She's Got You High
by scottie994
Summary: *HIATUS: Undergoing Revision!*AU - He didn't have a care in the world. He had no commitments, and he liked it that way. He reluctantly accepted to drive her.. unaware that it would change the course of his life.. UlquiHime; some GrimmNel. Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any other copyrighted material.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

He leaned against the side of the red tow truck, his eyes fixed on the gas meter as the numbers rounded up by the second. Sounds of hysterical coughing caught his attention, his gaze drifted across the parking lot. A skinny, but unusually robust redhead stood in front of her car, trying to wave away the smoke fuming from the vehicle with her hands. He studied her for a mere two seconds before turning his attention back to the gas meter.

Upon leaving the nicely air-conditioned gas station, he glanced towards the red-head who was sitting back on her heels and pouting in front of her car. Letting out a sigh, he started towards the sobbing woman, shaking his head.

"What are you doing, woman?" he asked, his sharp monotone voice cutting off her sobs. Obviously startled, the redhead straightened up, wiping her face, then turned her attention to him.

"N-nothing, I-I, um.. my car.." she trailed off, regarding her fuming car for a moment then turning back to him, gazing into his emerald eyes with her greyish-brown ones, "um, I believe its broken."

"That much is obvious." he said, rolling his eyes and causing the girl to go a faint shade of red.

He regarded her for a moment, he shouldn't just leave her here without atleast offering his help. His boss would most likely scold him for it if he found out, "If you'd like me to take a look at it, I can, but I'd rather to take it to the shop than do it here with the blazing hot sun on my back."

"Oh! Really!" she said, clapping her hands together, "That'd be great! I mean, if you really don't mind.." She looked at him expectantly, flashing him a big smile and giving him a once over. He was unusually pale for a someone living in California, and with the contrast of his pitch black hair which fell messily around his face, reaching shoulder length, he almost looked inhuman. She could make out a clear outline of abs through his thin white t-shirt, which made her go a little more red in the face.

He nodded and turned towards his truck, walking nonchalantly away, hands in pockets. The woman was surely confused now as he felt her eyes beaming into his back.

"I'm Orihime, by the way, Orihime Inoue." she said, smiling brightly at him as switched off the control and the front of her car stopped pulling upwards. He looked at her for a moment and nodded, his expression unchanging, causing her eyebrows to pull together. After checking that the car was secure, he hopped up in the truck and slammed the door shut. Orihime looked around, biting her lip, _is he just gonna leave me here..._

"Woman, get in." he said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh! Right," she said, chuckling nervously as she rounded the front of the truck and hopped up in the passenger side, "thanks again by the way. You're a lifesaver."

He didn't respond, starting the engine up and immediately cruising out of the parking lot.

She stared at him for a minute, trying to find some trace of emotion in his face. She couldn't, and with a _hmph_, she gave up.

"What's your name?" she asked, beaming at him again.

There was a long pause, "Ulquiorra Schiffer." he responded dryly.

Orihime chewed on her nails for a few seconds, then without thinking asked, "What do you do?" _mental facepalm._

He looked at her incredulously, "I'm a mechanic." he responded dully,_ is she alright in the head?_

The woman laughed, her face reddening again, "Right, obviously, sorry, I wasn't thinking for a moment.." she trailed off, scratching the back of her head.

Before she could recover from her stupidity, they pulled into the parking lot of a huge garage building.

Orihime stared blankly at a tall and muscular blue-haired man as he explained to her what was wrong with her car. Although he seemed to be speaking professionally, he added in a lot of curse words, which made it all even more difficult to understand. She snapped out of her state just in time to hear him say, "... it'll take 'til Saturday to fix-

"What!" she cried, "No, that can't be, I have to be at a wedding on Saturday in Atlantic City, and I'm the maid of honor, I have to be there a day early-" the blunette stared at her, "-oh god, oh god, Rukia is gonna hate me, I can't be late! Oh no-

"Is there a problem here?" said a calm masculine voice from behind her. She turned to see a tall and handsome man with brown hair approaching them.

"Yo Aizen, this chick's car needs fixin' and it'll take a few days, and then she starts goin' on about some weddin'.." the blue-haired man stopped speaking as Aizen held up his hand.

"Thank you Grimmjow," he said dismissively, then turned his attention to the young red-head in front of him, "I take it you need a drive to this wedding?" she nodded, "Well, it appears I'll have to ask one of my employees to drive you then-

"No, no no no, that's really okay," she said, "I don't wanna be a bother to you-

"Ulquiorra! Hey," he snapped his fingers in the direction past Orihime, "come here."

"Aizen." said a monotone voice beside her.

"This young lady needs a drive to, I'm sorry," he looked at her, "where is this wedding?"

"U-um, Atlantic City.." she said, her face flushing.

"Yes, Atlantic City, I would like you to drive her there, Ulquiorra." he said, smiling, a tad devilishly.

Orihime glanced at Ulquiorra just in time to see a glimmer of emotion cross his expression, _complete horror._

The pale man began to speak, "Aizen, I rea-

Aizen put his hand on Ulquiorra's shoulder, "Come on, look at her, the poor girl is in crisis." he said, gesturing toward the red-head.

Ulquiorra scowled, mostly at Aizen, but slightly at Orihime as well. Then he sighed, "Fine." he replied curtly, shrugging Aizen's hand off, _bastard._

Aizen clapped his hands together, "Wonderful. I'll leave you two to discuss your pending road trip." he said, and with that, he was disappeared from sight.

Ulquiorra's hands clenched in his pockets and he gritted his teeth, _I knew I should've left her there._

"So.. um, I hear it take just under two days to get there, so maybe if we-

"We'll leave now. It's still early, and I'd like to get this over with." he said, sounding a bit angry, "get your things together, I'll be back."

"He did what!" Grimmjow said, hardly containing his laughter long enough to speak.

"I don't see what's so funny." Ulquiorra said, glaring at his blue-haired idiot of a best friend.

His laughter subsided for a moment, "The thought of you having to drive all the way to Atlantic City with that bubbly redhead! She's a talkative chick, you're gonna be forced to listen to her fuckin' yap away for the next two days. This is hilarious, can I come?"

"No, one talkative idiot is one too many- oww!" he yelled, rubbing his head as he glared at the dark-skinned blonde woman before him, "What the fuck Tia?" _where did she even come from..?_

She pointed her finger right in his face, "You don't know anything about her. You will be nothing other than nice to that girl, you hear me." this wasn't a question.

"Fine." he said, still glaring at the blonde motherly figure of the workplace. For as long as he could remember she was always the one mediating everyone's conflicts around here. He watched her walk out of the room, still glaring.

Grimmjow waited until she left to burst out laughing again.

"I have to go." Ulquiorra said curtly, starting to leave.

"Have fun, call me if you need help burying the body." Grimmjow said, still laughing.

"I hate everyone.." Ulquiorra muttered, walking out into the garage area again. He scanned to the place for the redhead, his gaze falling on her in a conversation with the tall pink haired man with glasses and the robust aqua-haired woman beside him.

"Nel," he said, nodding the woman, then to the man, "Szayel." They smiled at him, to which he didn't return, and instead turned to the redhead, "Are you ready to go?"

The redhead nodded, picking up the various luggage bags around her, "Ready."

He stared at her, "How long are you going for, a year?" he said, glancing her two hefty luggage bags and huge shoulder bag.

Orihime giggled, "No, silly, just for two nights. Assuming we make it on time."

"We will." he said, staring off in some other direction, then turned, beckoning her to follow. After she said goodbye to his co-workers he heard her feet scuffle.

"You could help her with her bags you know!" called a woman's voice.

"If the woman wanted help, she'd ask for it." Ulquiorra stated, then continued walking.

"Well.. if you don't mind, I'd actually like some help.." she stated quietly, not sure if he heard her until he took her suitcases from her, lifting them with ease. She smiled and sped up to keep in pace with him. She heard Nel and Szayel calling out after the man in front of her, saying things like,"Don't be mean! That means you Ulquiorra!", "Have fun!", and then to her slight amusement, "Don't kill each other!" _Surely he wasn't that bad.._

To her surprise, he didn't lead her the red pickup they had been in earlier, but instead to a black cadillac parked behind the building. She could immediately tell that it was one of those cars that has been brought back from the dead on more than one occasion. After stuffing her luggage in the trunk, she hopped in the passenger seat to find Ulquiorra, who appeared to be patiently waiting. He started up the car, not noticing the woman next to him giving him a few looks over, _he is really, really good looking.. I wish he'd smile though, he's so.. mopey._

After driving in silence for almost a half hour, she reached into her bag and pulled out a lighter and her pack of cigarettes. He eyed her curiously, _is she really gonna smoke in my car, without even asking.._ she put one in her mouth, _of course she is.._

Before she could light up, a pale hand whipped to and from her mouth, taking the cigarette with it, and as her eyes followed she saw it fly out the window. "Hey!" she said, glaring.

He glanced at her, his expression like stone, "No smoking in my car." he said curtly.

Her jaw dropped a little. "You could've just said so, you didn't have to throw it out the window."

He shrugged, "I felt like being dramatic." he glanced at her again, "Besides, they're bad for you."

"Thanks, I didn't know that." she remarked, sarcastic tone at its highest. _Wow, usually no one makes me angry. This guy is somethin' else._

"Now you do."

She rolled her eyes, "I take it you don't smoke?"

"You would be right. My lungs are damaged enough as it is."

"Asthma?"

There was a long pause, "Something like that." he replied.

"So when will I get a smoke?" she asked eagerly.

"When we stop for gas." he replied bluntly.

"Which will be.. when?"

"When we need gas."

She glared at him for a moment, then turned her attention to the radio. She pressed to on button, and out came the sound of a bantering couple from one of her favourite channels. She sat back to relax to the sounds of the radio- it stopped. She opened her eyes and stared at the man driving.

He glanced at her, "No radio." he said simply, turning his attention back to the road, "Listening to those idiots bicker is gonna give me a migraine."

"But its funny." she said, almost whining.

"Its annoying." he retorted, then added, "Radio these days is 85% talking and 5% commercials, which only leaves 10% of music, which these days is also annoying. All the guys sound like girls, and no one seems to know how to play an instrument anymore."

She stared at him. He was so calm while saying all of this that she wanted to burst out in giggles. "You're opinionated." she said, letting a couple giggles slip.

"I'm merely stating facts." he replied bluntly, making her giggle even more.

"Do you atleast have CD's to listen to?"

"I do, but the CD player is broken, so they're of no use."

_Hmph_. She closed her eyes again. _This is going to be a long drive._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A bump in the road caused Orihime to wake up and look around cautiously.

"Great.. it's awake." Ulquiorra muttered under his breath.

She glanced at the clock, _I slept for three hours.. huh._ She glanced to her left, and noticed the bored expression on Ulquiorra's face, _perhaps he's tired of driving_, she rubbed her eyes.

"You know, I can drive for a bit." she said, flashing a big smile.

"No." he said, causing her smile to fade.

"Just no?"

"Yeah. No one but me drives my car but me." he said, then glanced at her, eyes piercing hers, "Especially not a woman."

"Excuse me? What do you mean, 'especially not a woman' ?" she asked, clearly offended.

Perhaps it was her lack of a smoke break, her going through some personality changes - for the worst - or this guy was truly an asshole.

He regarded her for a minute, "Women are poor drivers, its been proven. And I'm not gonna let my car get crashed because I have a lapse in judgement to let anyone, man or woman, drive my car."

She gaped at him, then muttered "This car is a piece of crap anyw- whoa!" she yelled as she lurched forward, glad she had a seatbelt on. Did he really just slam on the breaks..

He glared at her, "Don't insult the car." he said dryly, then smirked, "Unless you'd like to walk?"

She scowled, "I'm good here, thanks." she stated.

"Very well," he said, sounding a little disappointed, then continued driving.

"I'm a good driver." she said quietly, crossing her arms.

"I'm sure you are." he mumbled sarcastically.

She couldn't help but laugh on the inside at how defensive he was. Guys and their cars...

There had been another spell of silence, which lasted another two hours, until one sound broke the silence.

Orihime rubbed her stomach, then glanced pleadingly at Ulquiorra, "What?" he asked without looking at her, but raising an eyebrow to show his interest.

"I'm hungry."

He sighed, "There's a diner ahead. Be there in a minute.."

She blinked. "Have you made this trip before?" she asked curiously.

"Yes." he replied.

"Oh, cool. So I guess thats why Aizen asked you to drive me."

"He didn't ask, he forced, and he has no idea I've made this trip before. He just likes showing off his dominance over his employees and being an asshole."

She giggled, "I take it you don't like him very much."

"That would be an understatement." he replied bluntly, then out of nowhere turned off the road into a nearly deserted parking lot. There was a small gas station and a larger building with a neon sign that simply said " DINER".

Ulquiorra stared in awe at the woman in front of him as she devoured her meal, which happened to be enough for two people, if not more. She swallowed deeply near the end, chugging back her coke, then wiped her mouth, "Suppose I should slow down." she said, biting her lip then looked up at the man across from her.

He couldn't help but smirk, the smallest sign of amusement washing over his face. She noticed this too, and her eyebrows drew together, "What?" she asked.

He shook his head, "Nothing." he replied, then his smirk disappeared, "I've just never seen a woman of your size eat so much at once."

Orihime giggled, "Yeah, I've always been like this though. I haven't gained a pound since I was fifteen." she said proudly, then frowned at his plate of food, that was mostly untouched, "Not hungry?"

He shrugged, looking off into the distance, "Suppose not." he replied, "I could blame you and you disgusting display of eating."

She scowled at him, then shook it off and smiled again, "So, how often do you travel up this way?"

"Occasionally" he replied, still not looking at her.

"Oh.. um, why?" she asked, sipping her soda.

"Gambling."

"Really.." she said, nodding her head, "are you good at it?"

Now he looks at her, "Of course I am. I wouldn't gamble if I wasn't successful." he replied.

She laughed, "I see. I guess I just figured that everyone who gambled got addicted, and then couldn't stop whether they sucked at it or not."

"I don't have an addictive personality." he replied bluntly, starting to play with his french fries.

Orihime smiled, "How old are you?"

He seemed to think about it for a minute, staring up at the ceiling, "Twenty-five."

"Really?" she asked, sounding unconvinced, and he nodded, "Huh.. so you're older than me.. birthday?"

"December 1st."

"Huh, I figured you were only twenty-one or something."

He gave her a look, "Why is that?"

"Oh, you know, just cause, you look a lot younger than you are."

He shrugged, "Guess I'm aging well.." he muttered softly, as if unsure. She smiled at him, finding the look on his face rather funny and cute, which was probably a rare occurrence, so she soaked it in.

"Um.. so where are we staying tonight?" Orihime asked, pushing her food around with her fork.

"What do you mean?"

She gave him a confused look, "I mean, where are we sleeping."

"You can sleep in the car." he replied.

"Wait, so if we aren't getting a hotel room, where can we park the car while we sleep?" she asked.

"That won't be necessary." he replied.

"What, are you gonna drive all night."

"Yes." he said a-matter-of-factly.

She gaped at him, "Don't be ridiculous, you have to sleep."

"Woman, I have not slept in over a year." he said, again sounding as if it was the most obvious thing.

She giggled, but then judging by the look on his face, she realized he wasn't kidding. "Wait, what! You haven't slept in over a year?!"

"Is that not what I said?"

"That's weird. Why don't you sleep, I couldn't imagine going more than two days without sleep.. although that does explain why you act like that.." she said, appearing to be talking more to herself than to him.

"Act like what?"

"Hmm, how do I put it.. I guess.. you have an attitude, as if you have no emotions whatsoever. And you always seem so bored.. and arrogant, but now it kinda makes sense because you don't sleep, must just be permanently cranky or something."

He blinked at her, then he moved to get up, "Now who's the arrogant one." he stated, then threw a couple bills on the table, "I assume that you'll pick up your half." Then he left the diner, and Orihime sat there, a little stunned.

The sun beamed down on her face, waking her up. She was curled up on the back seat, rubbing her eyes. The night before, after she made her assessment of how Ulquiorra acted, they hadn't spoken. She had gone to sleep early, and he had wordlessly given her his oversized flannel shirt to use as a blanket.

"Hey, can you pull over at the next gas station?" she asked, sitting up slowly. He made a comprehensive noise, and in a few minutes he pulled into a parking lot.

He got out of the car and went around to lean against the hood, hands in pockets.

She stumbled out of the back, and darted for the door on the side of the building the said WASHROOM.

Of course it was disgusting, she hated public toilets. She tried to make herself look presentable in the mirror before leaving, she figured they'd make it to the city by the end of the night, and then she could actually shower, and see all her friends for the first time in a long time, but she didn't wanna look like a rumpled mess when they saw her.

He was still leaning against the car, like a statue, when she came out. She decided to try and talk to him, hopefully he wasn't still mad.

"Morning.." she said cheerfully, squinting under the sun.

He inclined his head, then continued to stare off in the distance.

"Um.. listen, I'm sorry about what I said last night. I hope you're not still mad. I shouldn't have been all arrogant and such.."

He gazed at her blankly, "I wasn't angry in the slightest. What gave you that idea?" he asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"Um, just, what you said, and how you made me pay for my food.. I just figured.."

"I called you arrogant because you are, along with pretty much everyone else on the planet, and I made you pay for your food because, one, we weren't on a date, and two, you ordered for around two or three people, and I'm not made of money." He pushed off the car and walked to the driver's side, "Oh, and about what you said, you were right. Except I was like this before the insomnia, and I'm sure if you ask Grimmjow, he'll say that I'm more pleasant now than ever before." With that, he started the car, waited for her to put her seatbelt on, and they set off again.

Orihime absent-mindedly chewed on her bottom lip for a bit, then switched to chewing on her nails, then went back to chewing on her lip.

He periodically glanced at the woman, who was gazing out of the window, seeming to be taking in all of the landscapes and buildings as they drove past. He was enjoying the silence.

Then out of the blue, "So, you and Grimmjow, you're like best friends or something..?" she asked, gazing at him now.

He sighed, "Yeah, you could say that." he replied, "We grew up together, along with everyone else that works at the garage."

She smiled, "Oh, so its like one big family then?" she asked, uncontained excitement in her voice.

He thought for a moment, "If by that, you mean a bunch of annoying idiotic adults strewn together because they have nowhere else to go, then sure, its a family."

The woman giggled, "A bit harsh, isn't it, I'm sure that they're all great to be around.."

"They're tolerable." he said bluntly, then took notice of the passing road signs, "Seems we'll be getting there early."

She clapped her hands together, "Really!" she said, "That's great!"

He smirked, "Who's getting married?" he asked, not sounding interested in the slightest.

She regarded him for a moment, then smiled, "My friends Ichigo and Rukia. They've been together since high school, its really sweet, I think." she said, smiling more now at the thought of her friends.

"I guess, if you choose to look at it that way." he said, stopping at a red light.

She made a confused face, "Do you have something against marriage?" she asked, not sure what he was trying to get at.

He shrugged, "Not in particular."

"Have you ever been to a wedding?"

"Yeah, Grimmjow and Nel married last year." he replied.

She giggled, "Those two are married, to each other?"

"Yes. Unless I was the best man at another blue-haired idiots wedding."

"Ooh! You were the best man. Thats cool, I'm the maid of honor, although I don't think I've been very good at it, since I couldn't be with Rukia much to plan it. But I suppose giving imput over webcam was good enough."

"Any of your other friends married?"

She shook her head, "Nah. But they're working on it, no doubt."

"What about you, are you working on it as well?" he asked, a hint of interest in his voice.

She giggled, "Um, I guess. I'm not pining after every guy I meet to marry me or anything, but thats not to say I don't want to meet someone eventually, I guess its not a high priority.." she trailed off, when was the last time I was on a date...

"I see." is all he said.

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No."

She blinked, "Really?"

"You seem surprised." he said, meeting her gaze for a moment.

"Just a little." she said, laughing a bit, "But then again, you don't seem like the type who enjoys company, so I suppose it makes sense."

"I gave up on girlfriends a long time ago, they were all so.. clingy and over-emotional." he said bluntly.

"I imagine they just cared about you."

"Can't imagine why, its not like I returned the feelings." he stated, more blunt than before.

Orihime gasped, "That's an awful thing to say!"

He looked at her, seeming confused for a mere second, "How so?" he asked.

She scowled and crossed her arms, looking straight ahead now, "You're insufferable." she stated.

"Likewise."

Orihime emerged from the fast food restaurant carrying two drinks and a paper bag of greasy burgers and fries. She carefully made her way back to the car where Ulquiorra was sitting atop the hood, resting his elbows on his knees. She placed the food beside him, taking her place on the other side.

He looked at her, then situated himself to eat.

They ate in silence, and the redhead finished first. She then decided to break the silence, "So.. how much further is the city?" she asked.

He thought for a brief moment, "Five hours that way," he pointed towards his left, "Give or take an hour."

"Oh goodie!" she said cheerfully, then a thought struck her, "Wait, so when we get there, will you be staying with me? Or are you going to head back home?"

There was a long pause, "I suppose I could call Aizen and get a couple more days off.." then he looked at her, "Would you have another way back?"

"Um.. I'm the only one that lives back this way, so it would be difficult to get a drive.. I suppose I could try though, they're all very good to me-

"Don't worry yourself woman, I'll drive you back." he said bluntly, then slid off the car and threw the garbage in the cans a few meters away.

When he returned to the car, she was beaming at him, a huge smile on her face. "What." he said, getting in the driver's seat.

She giggled and slid off the car, getting in the passenger side, "Nothing really, I suppose I'm a little happy that you'll be staying."

"Is that so." he said distantly, starting the car.

"Yeah, although I find you to be difficult, I think you're interesting." she laughed, "And I guess I don't have to worry about be dateless at the wedding."

He glared at her, "Excuse me?" he asked.

"What, you expected to just mope around for hours and hours while I'm off having fun at the festivities?"

"Yes. That's exactly what I planned to do. I'm not going to that wedding with you, woman." he stated dryly.

"B-but, w-why.." she pouted, "Please? Pretty please!"

She continued pouting for several minutes while Ulquiorra stayed silent. He glanced at her for a moment, then sighed, "Fine. But don't expect me to dance with you." he said bluntly, trying to mask his obvious annoyance.

"YAY!" she cried, clapping her hands together, feeling an urge to hug him before remembering that he was driving.

He shook his head slightly, trying to drown out the sound of her voice.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

For the remaining four hours of driving, Orihime took it upon herself to explain in great unnecessary detail what her friends were like, while Ulquiorra gripped the steering wheel and fought the urge to kick the chatty woman out of his car, literally with his foot.

'OH! There it is!" she exclaimed, pointing to the upcoming buildings as if he wasn't aware that they had just passed the sign that said ATLANTIC CITY.

He sighed in relief, now more eager to get out of the damned car and away from the woman beside him. He proceeded to drive to the hotel the woman told him about.

Taking out her cellphone. She pushed one button, most likely speed dial, and put the phone up to her ear. "Hey, Rukia, its me... yeah we just got in the city.. I'll explain when we get there, yeah... we're headed there now, shouldn't be too long.. okay, great, see ya soon." She snapped the phone shut, then looked over at him, "She said she'll be waiting in the lobby for us."

He merely nodded and continued driving. He enjoyed the new found silence, as he regarded Orihime's anxiousness, and she remained quiet until they arrived at the hotel. After driving around for a parking space because Ulquiorra refused the Valet, they got their luggage and made their way to the lobby.

"ORIHIME!" called a woman's voice, and they placed it to the tiny dark haired girl waving her arms frantically as she dashed away from a tall orange-spiky haired man towards them.

Orihime's face lit up at the sight of her best friend and put her bags down, awaiting a hug, which was received and lasted several minutes as they excitedly greeted each other. The orange-haired man, who Ulquiorra safely assumed was Ichigo, the groom, came up alongside his bride to be, "How long do you intend to squeeze the life out of each other, we've got shit to do." BAM! "OWW!" he yelled as he rubbed his recently smacked head and glared down at the tiny woman.

"I haven't seen her in _forever_, I'm entitled to hug her for as long as I want!" Rukia snapped, her arms crossed.

Ichigo glared at her for a moment, then smiled and turned to the redhead, "Hey Orihime, its good to see you." he said, offering a half-hug.

"Great to see you too." she said, returning the half-hug, then glanced at Ulquiorra, who was standing like a statue, hands in pockets, examining the wall beside them, "Oh, guys, this is Ulquiorra, he drove me here. Which is what I was gonna explain to you, you see my car broke down, and he works at a garage and offered to drive me while it was being fixed."

"I was forced by my boss." the pale man stated bluntly, not taking his eyes off the wall.

Rukia and Ichigo looked at him for a minute,_ this guy is pleasant_.. they both thought sarcastically in unison.

Ichigo chuckled, breaking the silence, "You're unusually pale to be from California, aren't ya?" he asked.

"Its called a skin condition." Ulquiorra replied dryly, regarding the man in front of him, who was clearly taken aback by his words.

Orihime let out a nervous laugh and spoke up, "Um, you guys, is it alright that I invited him to the wedding, as my date, just cause he's gonna be sticking around to drive me back home and I figured it only made sense for him to accompany me.."

Rukia broke her glare from the pale man and looked at her friend, forcing a smile, "Sure, no problem. That's nice of him, to agree to take you home."

Orihime smiled, "Yeah, it is." she said happily, looking at the stone-faced Ulquiorra, who was still being glared at my Ichigo.

"Um, okay, well, how about you guys check in and what not, then meet us in that room over there, well, technically its a 'hall'," she pointed to two big doors on the other side of the lobby, "everyone's in there."

"Okay, we'll see you in a bit." Orihime said, smiled and nudged Ulquiorra's arm for him to follow.

The bride and groom watched them walk up to the front desk, "That guy is weird." Rukia stated.

"More like a rude bastard." Ichigo said gruffly, taking his fiance's hand and leading her back to the hall.

"Are you with the bridal party?" the woman behind the desk asked.

"Oh, yes, I am. Orihime Inoue." she said, then looked at Ulquiorra who was leaning against the desk staring at the floor, "Um, you know, if you want, you can share my room. Its already paid for, and I assume you don't need a bed given the whole insomnia thing.."

Ulquiorra considered this, he didn't really want to pay for a room, then shrugged, "Why not." he said.

"Okay, here's your room keys, and check out is 11:00 AM on Sunday. Enjoy your stay."

Orihime smiled at the woman and took the keys, giving one to Ulquiorra, "Thank you very much." she said, and they both made their way to the elevators.

"Its really kind of Rukia's brother to pay for the rooms." Orihime said, pressing their floor number, "He's a really great guy. I suppose you'll meet him tomorrow, along with everyone else."

He said nothing, just stared at the floor.

Orihime bit her lip, _I hope I didn't weird him out by offering to share a room.._

They made it up to the top floor, which she heard had been completely bought out to accommodate the bridal party and the groomsmen. She smiled as she walked around the room, and fell on the bed, feeling exhausted as she sunk in.

"Try not to fall asleep." came a monotone voice, causing her to get up abruptly.

"Yeah, you're right. I should probably shower.. oh, but you can go first, I'll wait" she said, looking at him.

"If you insist." he replied dully, stepping into the bathroom and locking the door.

She plopped back down on the bed, _kinda thought he'd let me go first anyway_, she then went to her suitcases and began sorting through her clothes, trying to put something together to wear. After only a few minutes Ulquiorra emerged from the bathroom with clean clothes and wet hair being slowly towel dried. She took in his attire, black fitted jeans and a black button-up shirt. She stared at him for what felt like several minutes, mesmerized, until "Oh!"

He looked at her, "What?"

"I just realized we have to get you clothes, dress pants and such, oh dear... hmmm" she put her finger to her lips, then smiled, "We'll just go shopping early in the morning before I have to help Rukia."

He sighed, "Weddings are so troublesome.." he mumbled, then looked at the woman, "Aren't you gonna get ready, your friends are going to think you died."

Orihime giggled, then grabbed a pair of bluejeans and a white blouse, along with her bathroom bag, and rushed past him to the bathroom.

Ulquiorra sat on the small sofa for what felt like forever, waiting for the redhead to come out. _Women..._ he thought, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes. After another few minutes the bathroom door opened, and out came Orihime, all ready to go. He held his gaze on her as she put her stuff away, _she looks... kinda... beautiful._

"Ori~hime~!"

Ulquiorra noticed Orihime shudder then heard her mumble, "Here comes Chizuru.."

He recalled the woman saying that Chizuru was always fond of groping the redhead, and trying to make her a lesbian, which he thought was kind of amusing. And surely enough, the groping started, but was quickly interrupted by another woman, black-haired and seemingly built for her size, as she pulled the lesbian off of Orihime.

"Tatsuki!" the redhead greeted cheerfully, hugging the black-haired woman. This was the black belt in karate best friend he'd heard of earlier. "I'm so happy to see you!"

"Happy to see you too Hime," Tatsuki said, smiling at her, then looked at the pale man beside her friend and nodded, "Hey."

"Oh, Tatsuki, Chizuru, this is Ulquiorra, he-

"Yeah, Ichigo filled me in." Tatsuki interrupted, "Thanks for getting her here safely."

He inclined his head to show he heard her, but said nothing. "Awe, Hime! Did you get a boyfriend!" the lesbian whined, causing the redhead in question to laugh.

"No, no no, he's not my boyfriend." she assured.

Chizuru scowled at the pale man, obviously trying to get a message through to him along the lines of, 'don't touch her, she's mine', which made him feel even more amused, but he didn't respond to it in anyway.

"Oh, Chizuru, stop. You'll make him feel unwelcomed." Tatsuki said, whacking the lesbian on the head.

"That's the point." Chizuru muttered, then looked at Orihime, "Come find me later, I'm gonna go find my date.." she trailed off and walked away.

"She had a date?" Orihime asked.

Tatsuki nodded, "Yeah, her girlfriend, they've been together for a few months now." she said, then laughed, "But it seems she still isn't over you yet, is she Hime?"

Orihime laughed nervously, shaking her head slightly. She then looked up at Ulquiorra, who seemed to be scanning the room, taking in his surroundings. She smiled, "Hey, do you wanna meet more of my friends?" she asked.

He looked at her for a minute, _not really_, "Sure." he said, and followed her and her friend towards a group of people stationed in the corner of the room on a wrap-around sofa. He noticed the two from earlier, Ichigo and Rukia, who were sitting beside each other, obviously in the role of 'center of attention', which was expected. _These are way too many people to meet in one night.. why did I agree to this.._

"Hey guys! Glad you made it back down. I was worried that you died or somethin'." Rukia said, smiling brightly.

Orihime laughed and then regarded Ulquiorra's flicker of amusement pass through his eyes. "Hey, yeah, I took a while to get ready.." she said, sitting down beside a giant like figure, he immediately assumed it to be Chad, since he's the only one that fits her description of him. She beckoned for the pale man to sit next to her, which he reluctantly gave in to.

"I hope you didn't have difficulty finding a room Ulquiorra, I know that most of the hotel is booked." Rukia went on to say.

"Oh, it was fine, he's staying in my room." Orihime said, causing a few people to look at him, he ignored everyone except the skinny guy with glasses across from them, with an obvious look of jealousy in his eyes, _hmm, he must be the ex-boyfriend.. Uryu was it?_

"Oh.. I see.. um, cool.." Rukia trailed off, then smiled, "So anyways, Hime, I'll need you in the morning around, lets say.. um, 11:00."

Orihime nodded, "Alright, I'll be there."

The next hour or so went by slowly, at least for Ulquiorra, who sat beside Orihime the whole time while she talked to everyone and giggled and talked more. He, on the other hand, didn't say anything unless it was absolutely necessary. He was also introduced to a number of people to whom he would simply nod and let Orihime do the talking.

He sighed in relief when she turned to him and said, "Time to go I think, I'm tired."

He nodded and got up with her, waiting for her to say goodnight to the few people that were left, and they exited the hall.

"I'm gonna go out." he stated, "I'll be back in the morning."

"Oh, okay." she said, and smiled at him before they parted ways, her to the elevator, and him towards the building's exit. He breathed in the cool fresh air as he got outside. Thinking for a moment, he proceeded down the drive, deciding to walk to the casino rather than go searching the packed parking lot for his car.

"I think this will work, what do you think Ulquiorra?" Orihime asked, holding up a dark green button up shirt for him to look at. She scanned the store until spotting her reluctant shopping partner sitting on a sofa in the middle of the store, looking bored to death. She smiled and strode towards him, "Hey."

He opened his eyes to look at her, raising his head off the back of the sofa, "Sure." he replied dully.

She scowled, "You're not very helpful." she stated, then glanced down at the shirt, then to his eyes, "Oh goodie, it matches your eye colour!"

"Was that our goal?" he asked.

"Is now, come on, lets go pay. Grab the pants and the shoes." she demanded, and walked up to the register, feeling very victorious at finding a nice outfit for her date.

"Now that I think of it, we'll look very good together today." she announced as they left the store, bags in hand.

"Is that so." he replied, taking his keys out of his pocket.

"Yes, because my dress is violet, to match Rukia's eyes of course, and purple and green compliment each other." she stated, smiling at him as she put the bags in the backseat.

"Nice observation." he said disinterestedly, starting the car.

They entered the lobby of the hotel, and before they made it to the elevators Tatsuki intercepted the red-haired woman, saying something about the bride having a meltdown and whisking her away hurriedly. Ulquiorra waited for the elevator.

"You must be Ms. Inoue's date." came a voice from behind him, and he turned to see a tall man with long dark hair, "Byakuya Kuchiki, the bride's brother."

Ulquiorra nodded, "Hey." he said, then the elevator dinged and the doors slid open.

"If you aren't busy for the next little while, come out to the gardens, we could use a hand setting up." Byakuya said, and then continued walking in the direction the girls had gone in a few moments before.

"I can't marry that IDIOT!" cried a distressed bride to be, who was sitting amongst a pile of used tissues.

"What's this about marrying an idiot?" said a dark skinned woman with purple hair as she entered the room.

"Oh, Yoruichi, just the person to talk to, you've already married an idiot." said a strawberry blonde woman who sat beside Rukia.

Yoruichi rolled her eyes, "He may be an idiot, but Kisuke is also a genius, which is more than I can say for Gin." she said, sitting in front of Rukia, then glanced at the woman again, "Oh, Rangiku, I'm kidding. Kind of.."

Rangiku scowled before she continued rubbing the brides back in a soothing motion while the purple haired woman started giving a motivational speech. Orihime couldn't help but laugh at the end of it when she heard "And don't forget, when he gets out of hand you can just beat him up, we all know you're stronger than him."

This made Rukia laugh and nod in agreement, but then go back to distress mode as she listed off all the things that could possibly go wrong with the ceremony, causing everyone in the room to sigh heavily and assume crisis mode again.

After two hours of consoling, Rukia finally gave in to everyone's reassurances and proceeded to get her hair and makeup done. Orihime excused herself momentarily to go check on Ulquiorra and grab some things from the room. The ceremony was in less than an hour..

Ulquiorra emerged from the bathroom post shower, picking at a splinter he got from helping reposition the wooden podium for the wedding ceremony. "Son of a bitch.." he mumbled, then looked up to find Orihime staring at him, or rather his exposed torso. He proceeded to button his dark green shirt up, "I take it the bride has calmed down." he said, fixing his cuffs.

The redhead blinked, "Uh, y-yeah. It took awhile, but she eventually went back to wedding mode." she said, noticing her red face in the mirror on the wall which made her blush more, "Um, you look really great. I knew that shirt would look good."

He glanced at her for a moment, nodded and started rummaging around in his duffle bag. She smiled at him, then remembered the tasks at hand and picked up her makeup bag, "So, I have to go get ready with the other girls, but I'll see you at the ceremony."

He nodded again without looking at her, then turned to leave the room after her.

Ulquiorra sat in the very back, watching and listening with disinterest as the ceremony commenced. During the vows, which made him want to gag and laugh at the same time, he noticed the red haired woman, who he had already regarded to be possibly more stunning than the bride, was fighting back tears, _such a woman._

The ceremony finally ended after what felt like forever, although it was only over a half hour, and everyone waited for the newlyweds to make it back down the aisle, shortly followed by Orihime, who winked at him, arm in arm with Chad, the best man, and the other bridesmaids and groomsmen he didn't care to remember. After they were all out of view, the rest began to leave the gardens, going up towards the hotel.

"Oi! Ulquiorra!" he turned towards the voice and matched it to Tatsuki, who was approaching him. He waited, stuffing his hands in his pockets, scanning the scenery. Then she was beside him, showing a crooked smile, "There's a bit of a wait for the reception, so Orihime asked me to keep you company until she met up with you again."

He nodded, then continued walking.

"So, how did like the ceremony?" she asked, walking with her hands clasped behind her back.

He thought for a moment, "It was nice, I suppose." he said dryly.

She chuckled, "Yeah, I suppose for a stranger you must feel out of place."

"You picked up on that."

"Yeah.. but I think its nice of you to be her date."

He looked at Tatsuki for a minute, then continued staring ahead, not saying anything. They made it to the lobby before she spoke up again, "Do you like her?" she asked curiously.

He stopped and turned to her, "She's bearable." he replied bluntly.

Tatsuki's eyebrows pulled together, "Uh-huh, are you sure its nothing more. Cause I don't know many guys that would drop everything to take a complete stranger across state lines for five days if they didn't have feelings brewing."

There was a long pause, "I didn't have much of anything to drop, and as for the rest, I was merely doing what I was told." he replied.

Tatsuki gave him a funny look, "Really.. cause Hime told me that you were only asked to drive her here." their eyes met, "But you made the conscious decision of being her date and driving her home on your own." she smiled and started to walk away, adding, "Must feel something more than "bearable"."

He stared after the dark-haired woman, processing what she had just implied._ Pffft, me, like that annoying woman, thats ridiculous._ He sighed and shook his head, making his way to the elevators, muttering "I'm no good for her anyways."

"Come on, ple~ase! Just one dance?" Orihime whined, smell of alcohol coming along with the words.

He sighed and shook his head, "No. I told you yesterday not to expect me to dance with you, and I meant it." Ulquiorra replied tonelessly.

She pouted for several seconds, and with a hmph turned away from him, "Chad, would you like to dance with me?"

Ulquiorra eyed the giant-esque man, who simply nodded and went on the dance floor with the half-drunk redhead. He gazed at the pair in amusement as the woman danced her way around the best man, who merely stood smirking at her and being cautious that she doesn't fall over.

"Thats an amusing sight." Tatsuki said next to him, also gazing at her best friend who was skipping around, flailing her arms around like a moron, "She's pretty loaded.."

"She's somethin' else." Ulquiorra stated with an undertone of amusement in his voice.

Tatsuki regarded the man beside her, who seemed unable to take his eyes off of the dancing woman, and she smiled, turning her attention back to her friend as well.

"But I don' wanna go to bed." she slurred as she wobbled beside him, suddenly taking her heels off and running down the hall to their room. He shook his head and kept walking at his usual pace, watching the girl ahead of him fumble with the keys to the room. He sighed and unlocked the door himself.

He closed the door behind them and switched the first light on to see Orihime looking at him enticingly as the leaned against the wall. He looked at her for a minute, then started towards the sofa to sit down, before being intercepted by the woman stumbling into him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He tried not to meet her gaze, but failed terribly. Her lips crushed against his, and he gave in without a fight. Several moments passed before she began unbuttoning his shirt and he led her towards the bed, slowly slipping off her dress..

AUTHORS NOTE : If you'd like the image of Orihime dancing that

**I had in my head as I wrote it, then listen to **I Love It (feat. Charli XCX) by Icona Pop**. It should work for anyone.**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

She giggled as she wriggled out of her dress, continuing to kiss him excitedly. After several moments of kissing and excessive groping, Orihime lurched forward, clapping a hand over her mouth. He sat up, about to say something but was cut off by her sudden dart to the bathroom. Sounds of her puking her guts out echoed through the wall toward him. _That's disgusting_. He sighed, sliding off the bed and grabbing his shirt off the floor. He leaned against the window frame, gazing out at the view of bright city lights. "I suppose its for the best..." he muttered.

He glanced behind him to witness the half-naked Orihime stumble out of the bathroom. She didn't acknowledge him and went straight for the bed, crawling under the blanket and falling fast asleep. He leaned against the wall gazing at her. He lingered for several minutes, listening to her steady breathing. Pushing off the wall, he left the room and headed for the elevators.

"Oi! You in the green!" he looked over to see Tatsuki, stumbling slightly as she started towards him.

He continued walking through the lobby, coincidentally in her direction, then stopped and waited for her.

"Where ya goin'"

"Out."

Her eyebrows pulled together, "I can see that." she slurred, then glanced around, "Where's Orihime?"

"She passed out a few minutes ago." he replied bluntly.

"Ah, you weren't by any chance going to get her meds, were you?" she asked, grinning more now.

He smirked, "Why would I do that. It'd imply that I care."

She eyed him curiously as he left the lobby, "I don't know what to make of him.." she muttered before turning back towards the party.

Orihime's squinted at the sun that beamed in through the windows, causing her to groan and curse before shifting onto her other side. She laid there a few minutes longer, attempting to fall back to sleep, until a realization made her sit upright and grip the sheets to her chest. Just then, Ulquiorra walked into the room absent-mindedly.

She glared at him, "Why am I naked!"

He looked at her, seeming a bit surprised at her wakefulness, "How should I know." he replied bluntly, then chucked a pharmacy bag on the bed in front of her.

She eyed it momentarily, "What's that?"

He was gazing out the window, and replied without hesitation "Headache pills and bottled water."

"Oh.." she said quietly, proceeding to take a couple of the tablets and a big gulp of water, still eyeing the man across the room. They stayed in silence for a few minutes, which gave her enough time to recover a bit of the memories from the night before, "What happened after we left the party?"

"You threw up for about five minutes and passed out on the bed." he replied bluntly, still not looking at her.

"Oh.. okay.. um, we didn't, like, kiss or anything, did we?"

He looked at her for a few seconds, then averted his gaze back to the window, "Don't be ridiculous."

She sighed in relief, "Phew, I was worried for a minute. I could've sworn I remembered kissing you though... just my imagination I suppose," she laughed, rubbing her head, "I mean, I'd feel pretty embarrassed if I did and couldn't even remember."

He looked at her again, then turned around and headed to the door, "Get dressed, we're leaving in fifteen minutes."

"Ok." she replied quietly, and then waited for the sound of the door closing before getting out of bed. She knelt down before her suitcase and rummaged through the clothes until she found her grey sweatpants and a tank top.

After about fifteen minutes the door of the room opened, just as Orihime zipped up her second suitcase and glanced around the room to see that she had everything packed.

"Ready?"

She looked at Ulquiorra, who was leaning against the wall looking at her. She gave him a once over, _at least one of us looks good_, she thought, starting to feel self-conscious. She simply nodded and picked up her shoulder bag. He slung his duffle bag over his shoulder and then grabbed her two suitcases.

The lobby was packed full of hungover guests waiting to check out. They waited behind the long line, Ulquiorra staring off at some unknown sight and Orihime with her eyes closed, trying to drown out all the sounds and people around her. The line moved along relatively slow. Ulquiorra felt something against his arm and looked down to see a head of red hair resting against his white shirt. He stared down at the woman for several seconds before mentally shrugging and allowing her to continue.

After what felt like hours, they were checked out and heading for the exit. She squinted under the harsh beam of sun, cursing under her breath as they headed for the car.

"I'm gonna sleep in the back." Orihime stated, throwing her bag on the seat.

He nodded, slamming the trunk closed, "Just don't puke in my car." he replied bluntly and got in the driver's side.

She rolled her eyes and crawled in the back, forming a pillow out of her bag that she purposely stuffed with clothes for this particular reason. The car started moving, and as soon as she closed her eyes she was out of it.

The sound of thunder caused her to wake up abruptly and look around cautiously. It was dark and dangerously stormy out now. She bit her lip, then nudged Ulquiorra's shoulder, "I don't think we should be driving in this."

"Don't worry yourself woman, we're fine." he replied bluntly.

She sat back, wrapping her arms around her legs and bringing them up to her chin. Her wide eyes narrowing at every rumble or swish, "Ulquiorra, I really think we should get a room somewhere and wait out the storm."

"You're going to be persistent about this, aren't you?"

She nodded "Yes."

"Fine." he said curtly, mumbling what she assumed to be curse words directed at her.

"We'll take the cheapest room you have available." Ulquiorra stated bluntly to the receptionist at the first hotel they passed.

She gave him a look, then put on her fake smile, "Alright, lets see.." she typed something, "The cheapest we have is the queen bed for 125.00 per night."

He sighed, "That'll have to do." he replied, obviously annoyed.

"Okay, just one night?" He nodded. "Okay, cash or credit?"

"Cash." he said, taking out his wallet. Both Orihime and the receptionist stared in shock at how thick his wallet was. The woman behind the counter scowled at him for being so cheap when he appeared to have plenty of money. Orihime just never saw so much money at once so close up.

The woman took the money and gave them their keys, adding "I'll warn you that the rooms are rather warm tonight, our A/C is broken at the moment."

_Wonderful_, he took his key and gave a curt 'thank you' before proceeding down the hallway to the room, muttering under his breath.

The room was warmer than the woman had let on, only further annoying Ulquiorra.

"Why do you have so much cash?" Orihime asked as she kicked her shoes off and unzipped her sweater.

He gave her a look, "I made use of my prolonged stay in a city full of casinos." he said, sitting on the bed and laying back.

"You made all that from gambling? You weren't kidding about being good at it, were you." she said, giggling softly.

He didn't say anything, and continued to stare at the ceiling.

"If you don't mind me asking, if you have all that money, why did you want the cheapest room?"

"Just because one has lots of money doesn't mean they have to flaunt it around at every chance. Thats how one becomes poor." he replied tonelessly, sitting up again and looking at her. "Besides, I have to make up for the money I missed out on making if I had been able to stay at home and work."

This made her blush out of guilt, "I suppose that makes sense. I'm sorry, I know its basically my fault you're here."

"I don't _mind_ being here." he replied.

She giggled, "Yeah, tell that to your face." she said, then walked to the bathroom, "I'm gonna shower."

He laid back on the bed, silently complaining about the heat as he listened to the shower running. After a few minutes he heard the bathroom door open and feet creeping hurriedly across the floor. He squinted out of one eye at the woman a meter away, wrapped in a towel, quickly pulling out articles of clothing from her bag before rushing back to the bathroom. He closed his eye shut again, smiling at the still vivid image of the woman's naked body in his mind from the night before.

He sat up when he heard the bathroom door open again for the damp-haired woman wearing cut off jean shorts and a thin cut off tank top to emerge.

"Ugh! Even wearing close to nothing makes no difference!" she said, throwing her arms up in the air out of annoyance, causing him to show a crooked smile.

She regarded him, surprised to see him _actually_ smiling at her. Striding over to him she flopped down beside him and laying down, combing through her wet hair with her fingers. He laid down again too, so that they were beside one another. Silence ensued for several minutes. She glanced at him, then looked him over, "Aren't you warm with all those clothes on?" she asked.

"I'm warm either way." he replied, looking at her for a second before shutting his eyes again.

She smiled, then hesitated, "You know, I don't mind if you wanna dress down. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

He was silent. He glanced at her, then sat up and took off his t-shirt and jeans, then laid back wearing only his black boxers, sighing with slight relief.

She giggled, "Feel better?"

"Significantly."

Almost a complete hour of silence passed before Orihime sighed out of boredom and sat up, glancing around the room. She picked up the remote and started flicking through the channels on the television, which was mostly all static. Ulquiorra became annoyed quickly by this and put his arms over his face with a loud grunt. After five minutes she angrily turned the TV off and slammed the remote on the table. Scanning the room for a few seconds until she found something interesting - Ulquiorra's body.

She grinned widely as she crawled on the bed and sat cross-legged beside him. Resting her chin on her hand, she examined his toned torso with her eyes. Glancing to see if he was paying attention, which he was but didn't show it, she took her free hand and began tracing her index finger along his skin. She glanced from her finger to his face and back again. She noticed him biting his lip, as if trying to keep laughter from coming out.

"Are you ticklish?" she asked incredulously, beaming at him, grin growing wider.

"No." he replied quickly.

She laughed, continuing her activity. Hearing a muffled sound she looked at him again, "You are aren't you!" she exclaimed, laughing again.

"I don't know what you're talk- " he stopped and squirmed away from her touch, and shot her a glare.

She giggled, "You were saying."

He sat up, still glaring at her as he rested his back against the bed frame. She stopped giggling and turned on her side to look in the drawer on the bedside table, "Oh! Playing cards!" she said happily, resuming her sitting position, "What should we play?" she asked, shuffling the cards and beaming at him.

"Suppose strip-poker is pointless now.." he mumbled, staring off at the wall.

She giggled for a few seconds, then gasped, "Did Ulquiorra Schiffer just make a joke?"

He looked at her, "It tends to happen. I'm not made of stone."

She shrugged, "Could've fooled me.. how about Crazy 8s?" she looked at him again, "Come on, play with me, please please please please-

"Alright." he said firmly, causing her to smile wide again.

"Great!" she said happily, dealing the deck, "Prepare to lose."

He picked up his cards, "I'll do no such thing."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: **Thanks to those who have followed and reviewed, I'm glad people like it. Thanks and please keep it going. Enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 5

"Aww, that's not fair!" Orihime whined, turning her bottom lip up at him.

Ulquiorra smirked, "You're a sore loser, aren't you?"

She scowled and threw down her cards. She sat and pouted for a few minutes, then glanced at him pleadingly, "One more game?"

"No. We've been playing for an hour already, which was sixty minutes longer than I would have preferred." he replied bluntly.

_Hmph._ She brought her knees up and rested her chin, rubbing her toes together thoughtfully. He stared at her long enough to see something flicker through her eyes before she swung her legs off the bed and made her way to her bag. After rummaging for a moment, she brought out a small wallet and grabbed a sweater.

"I'm gonna go get snacks!" she exclaimed happily before skipping out of the room.

His eyes followed her out the door, and rested there, waiting patiently for her return. After a few minutes the door opened again and in came the woman, obviously struggling while she kicked the door closed and heaved a pile of snacks and water bottles on the bed. He stared at the array of chip bags and chocolate bars and then back at her.

Before he could make a blunt comment, she pulled out of her sweater pocket what appeared to be a VHS tape, "What is that?"

She giggled, "Its a movie, silly." she replied, "I noticed that there was a VHS player in here, so I asked the receptionist if they had any movies. They didn't have very many to choose from since apparently a lot of the guests have been asking for them due to the static TV's." she made her way to the television, still speaking, "But we're in luck because I found one of my all time favourites! Which makes us super lucky because other than this there were just stupid space movies," she slid the tape in the player and hit play, "like 'Stair Wars'-

"You mean 'Star Wars'?"

She giggled, "Yeah, that one." she replied, shrugging off her sweater and jumping on the bed next to him.

"There is absolutely nothing 'stupid' about 'Star Wars'." he stated bluntly.

She laughed, then noticed his completely serious expression. Then her laugh turned into a wide, teasing grin, "Are you a Star Wars geek, Ulquiorra?"

"If by that, you mean I praise the, for lack of a better word, 'awesomeness' of said films, then yes, I am." he responded with a slight defensive tone.

This made her grin wider, but she kept quiet and turned back to the television, which was now displaying the title of the film, SOME LIKE IT HOT. He read the screen and sighed, _what is this Woman making me watch.._

_

"This film is ridiculous, woman."

She looked at him and pouted, "Its only twenty minutes in! Give it a chance!" she whined.

He stared at her, then took a bag of chips and began eating, turning his attention reluctantly back to the screen, audibly mumbling, "I would rather be watching Star Wars.."

He found himself watching the woman beside him intently. She sat, absent-mindedly stuffing her face, seemingly lost in the black and white film in front of her. Her eyes welled up slightly and his eyes averted to the screen just in time to see the last few minutes of the movie. _What is she crying about?_

The credits came on the screen and her gaze turned to him, "I love happy endings!" she exclaimed, wiping her eyes.

"If you consider a woman realizing the man she loves is a cross-dresser a 'happy ending'." he responded bluntly, crossing his arms.

She gasped, "That's not even- you- you didn't even pay attention did you!"

He regarded her, then smirked, "I found you more interesting."

Her eyes widened a fraction in surprise, then her cheeks turned a faint pink, "O-oh, um-

"You have crumbs on your face." he stated, causing her to blush more and wipe her face quickly and look at him for approval. His hand lifted to her face, gently brushing the last of the crumbs with his thumb. They held each others gaze for a long moment, then he snapped out of his trance and retracted his hand, getting off the bed. Her gaze followed him as he took what looked like a toothbrush out of his duffel bag and disappeared into the bathroom. _What was that about?_ She sat in stunned silence for a moment longer, then blinked and smiled, before standing up on the bed..

Ulquiorra lazily brushed his teeth in front of the mirror, a confused expression on his face, _why did I do that.. it was almost_- he grimaced - _affectionate._. Was he growing feelings for that annoying woman? _Ridiculous.._ He finished up and left the bathroom, only to find the woman giggling and bouncing up and down on the mattress. He stood stunned on the spot, his eyes fixated on her, mostly on her chest, lingering for a few moments before shaking his head, "Woman, what are you doing?"

Startled slightly, she let her legs give out and landed on her behind, laughing, "Its called 'having fun'," she replied, then gave him a slightly serious look, "you should try it sometime."

He sighed and tossed his toothbrush to his bag, then walked to the bed. She retreated to the other side of the bed so he could lay down, and put his arms over his face. She was struck with deja 'vu as she sat, her gaze fixated on him. She heard him sigh and then met his cold green eyes with her warm gray ones, "Why are you staring at me, woman?" he asked sharply.

"W-what, oh, um, sorry." she scratched the back of her head and laughed nervously, "Just spacing out again, that's all."

His eyes lingered on her for a minute longer, as if looking for something in her expression, then closed them again, resuming his previous form. Several minutes passed, in which he listened intently to her movements around the room, coming to the blind conclusion that she was getting ready for bed. Feeling eyes on him, he let his arms slip behind his head and met the woman's gaze. She was laying on her stomach with her chin resting on her hands, legs crossed behind her, smiling at him.

"Is there something you want, woman?"

"Not really.. I was just wondering.. um, why you don't sleep anymore?"

There was a long pause, "I just choose not to."

"Oh, how come?"

He looked at her for a moment, then continued staring at the ceiling, "I'm a consistent sleepwalker, have been for years, around two years ago I got hit by a car one night while I was sleepwalking. After I had recovered from my injuries, with the exception of the minor damage to my lungs, I decided to stop sleeping, to prevent it from happening again."

"Oh, that's terrible." she concluded, hint of worry in her voice.

He sighed, "It's nothing to worry about. Its better this way."

"Isn't it difficult though, staying awake 24/7?" she asked, intrigued.

"It was at first, but I got used to it eventually." he replied tonelessly.

There was a few minutes of silence as the redhead bit her lip, thinking of what to say next, but was pleasantly surprised to hear him speak first,

"What is it that you do?"

"Um.. I, uh, I'm a waitress.. well, I was last week, but I got fired," she paused, "but I'm hopefully gonna find another job this week.."

"I see." he said, then asked, "Anything else?"

"Um, not much else, I usually just sit at home and paint, or go to the beach, and I'm always with my dog." She smiled at the thought of her beloved german shepherd, who was being taken care of by her neighbour this weekend, "I miss him."

Ulquiorra stored this information, but said nothing.

"Um, what about you, do you do anything other than work and gamble?"

"Occasionally." he replied, making an obvious disinterest in the question.

She bit her lip, she wanted to know more, "Do you have any family, I mean, biological family?"

"No." he said sharply.

"Oh.." she bit her lip and then quietly said, "Something in common.."

He regarded her for a moment, noticing her sudden distant and sad expression before a sheet of red hair covered her face. He was hesitant at first, but went on to slowly tuck the hair behind her ear, causing her to look at him, catching a sympathetic look in his eyes. She smiled, and her heart skipped when she got a small smile in return before his gaze left hers and returned to the ceiling. A few seconds passed, her neck was becoming more warm, surprising her with the fact his hand was still touching her, and he seemed oblivious to it. _...he's acting so kind all the sudden.._ If it was possible for him to become more attractive to her, she was certain this was it.

Unsure exactly why, she advanced towards him, feeling her heart fluttering excessively as her lips crushed against his. His eyes widened a fraction, but he gave in almost instantly, she pressed her body against his, deepening their kisses as his hands grazed and groped her skin, and they let their minds go dark with lust...

He had been leaning against the wall for what seemed like hours, arms crossed, head back, eyes fixated on the sleeping woman not more than a meter away from him. She looked so peaceful. The storm had stopped sometime during the past few hours, he noticed this, and stood debating whether he should wake the woman up or let her sleep a bit longer. Perhaps he was just avoiding looking into those eyes of hers again, avoiding answering the inevitable question she would ask him. Or maybe he was wrong, maybe she would be on the same page as him, and let it be. Although, he doubted that. It didn't fit her character.

He sighed, taking his eyes off the woman and hanging his head. He pushed off the wall and proceeded towards the bathroom, grabbing his duffel bag on the way.

Emerging from the bathroom, post-shower, he looked to the window where he could see the sun coming up. He thought for a minute, then took out his jeans and flannel shirt. He went to the bed, buttoning his shirt up, and nudged her shoulder. She woke up slowly, squinting for several seconds while her mind caught up with the situation. Rolling over on her back and stretching, she looked up at Ulquiorra, then smiled.

"Morning.." she said sleepily.

He gave her a faint smile, "Come on, we should get going." he said, retreating to the window, gazing out at the sunrise as Orihime went around the room getting ready half-hurriedly.

_

They had been driving for over an hour, neither of them speaking. Orihime would glance at him often, but he kept his eyes on the road ahead with his usual stoic expression. He ignored her occasional sighs and constant fidgeting, suppressing the urge to look at her.

One more sigh, and she began to speak, "Ulquiorra, I think-

"Are you hungry?" he asked quickly, cutting her off.

She thought for a moment, "Um, yeah, actually, I'm starved..."

She bit her lip, considering continuing her question, but decided to wait a while longer, as her mind filled with thoughts of her pending breakfast. He mentally sighed with relief as he nodded to her answer and pulled into the next restaurant he saw.

"You sure you don't wanna order anything?" Orihime asked, cutting up her chocolate chip pancakes and shoving a forkful in her mouth.

"I'm sure." he responded, looking out the window.

She swallowed, _maybe I could ask now.._, "So listen-

"What's your dogs name?" he asked, forcing a curious tone.

Her eyebrows drew together for a few seconds, then she smiled, "Mr. Butters."

He gave her a strange look, "You.. named your dog, 'Mr. Butters'?"

She giggled, "Yeah.." she paused, "when he was a puppy he really like peanut butter, and still does.. anyways, peanut butter didn't work, and peanuts didn't really suit him, so I chose 'Butters'. Then when he got older I added 'Mr.' to the beginning, make it sound more grown up.. which I realize is even more silly.. I'm really bad at picking out names, I worry for when I have a baby, and I have to name them, cause I'll probably name them something stupid, and then they'll grow older and hate me for it."

He continued to stare at her, and she continued eating, forgetting for the moment about her question.

_

During the remaining hours of their trip home, Orihime made several attempts to ask him her question, and he succeeded every time to cut her off midway by asking her things, that to his surprise he was actually a bit interested in, and stoically listened to her long answers, until they finally arrived back at the garage.

"I'll get your bags." he said, and quickly got out of the car.

"Thanks." she said with a smile, closing the car door and slinging her bag over her shoulder and proceeding towards the building.

"Orihime!" yelled a woman's voice, and the redhead turned to see Nel skipping happily towards her.

"Hey Nel." she greeted with a smile.

"How was your trip? Tell Nel everything!" the aqua-haired woman demanded in a sweet tone, smiling wide.

"Um.. it was good-

"NEL!" yelled a gruff voice, and Orihime immediately matched it to Grimmjow as he stomped towards his wife, "What the fuck are ya doin'!"

Nel bit her lip, her eyes becoming bigger and sparkling with tears, "Wh-what-

"Don't 'wh-what' me! The owner of that damn car is gonna be here in two hours and you didn't even finish the fuckin' waxing yet! Now get back to work, dammit!" he yelled, pointing in the direction he came from.

By now Nel was crying, "YOU'RE A BIG MEANY!" she screamed and turned in the opposite direction, stomping away in a childlike manner while yelling, "I WANT A DIVORCE!"

"SEND ME THE DAMN PAPERS! I'LL SIGN EM' IN A FUCKIN' HEARTBEAT!" he yelled, then stomped back in the other direction.

Orihime stood stunned on the spot, "What just happened.."

"Don't worry about it, she says that at least twice a week." said a monotone voice.

She whipped around to see Ulquiorra standing in his usual statue-like stance, looking off in the distance.

He looked at her still stunned expression, and added, "They've been together since middle school, and they were fighting long before that. They'll never actually break-up."

"Oh.."

"I'll be back with your car keys." he said and then turned towards the offices.

She nodded and bit her lip, feeling awkward just standing in the middle of the huge building. He was back in under a minute, handing her the keys and a clipboard, "Sign the bottom."

She signed quickly and took the keys, "Thanks a lot, um.. where is it?" she asked, glancing around.

He started walking past her, beckoning her to follow without a word. She picked her bags up and followed him. They passed by a couple cars, one being worked on by a lanky, and in her opinion 'creepy looking' man with long black hair. He gave her a toothy grin, to which she gave a shy smile back and picked up her pace.

Arriving at her car, which looked better than it ever had before, she put her luggage in the trunk, then smiled at Ulquiorra, "Tell everyone thanks, for fixing it and whatnot."

He nodded, "You have til Friday to drop off the cheque," then looked at her, "If you fail to do so, we have plenty of ways to find you."

She laughed, a bit nervous at his seriousness, "Yeah, I'll get in it by Friday."

He nodded and began to turn, "Ulquiorra," he paused and looked back at her, she came closer, "I wanted to, um, talk about last night, I was.. wondering what it meant.."

"It didn't mean anything." he replied sharply.

Her eyes widened a bit, "What.. wwhat do you mean?"

He sighed, and looked away, "I simply made the best out of a boring situation." he replied bluntly.

"You don't mean that.. do you?"

He looked at her, _No I don't_, "Yes. I do."

_SLAP!_ His face jerked to the side, and his gaze met hers, which was filled with anger. She glared at him for several seconds, then lowered her hand and quickly got in her car, driving past him and out of sight.

"Dude, what the fuck was that about?" said Grimmjow's voice.

Ulquiorra turned to his friend, who was standing several feet away from him, and started to walk towards him, "How long were you there?"

"Long enough," he replied, "did your reflexes die on you or something, you could have easily dodged that slap."

Ulquiorra paused by the blue-haired man, and said, "I deserved it."

Grimmjow's eyes followed the pale man's retreating figure, slightly taken aback at the sullenness in his friends voice.

"What was that about?" asked Nel, appearing to be completely recovered from their previous scene.

He turned to her, then shrugged and put his arm around her, "I have a hunch.." he replied, steering them around, "Come on, lets go finish that ol' geezer's car."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

She sat in the outside seating area of a small cafe, positioned in between a long strip of clothing boutiques and misc. type shops. The area was busy as usual, people laughing and talking cheerfully around her, and she sat there staring off in the distance at nothing in particular, slightly frowning. The feeling of weight on her lap caused her to snap out of her trance and look down to see her beloved dog looking up at her, nuzzling his head on her thighs. She smiled and patted his head, "Don't worry Mr. Butters," she whispered, "everything will be fine."

Before she could return to her distant demeanor, the sounds of familiar voices arguing caught her attention, and her gaze met the bright-haired couple she met the week before,

"... why do you need so many fucking shoes!" Grimmjow inquired in a gruff tone, catching the attention of the people around them.

"BECAUSE! I'm a lady, and I require multiple shoes! Do you expect me to wear the same pair everyday!" Nel retorted in her usual childish voice, crossing her arms.

"YES!" Grimmjow finalized, and rolled his eyes as his wife pouted like a six-year old.

Orihime smiled to herself, and looked off in the distance until, "HIME!" She whipped her head back to Nel, surprised that she had been noticed so easily in the crowd, then noted it that it was probably her unmistakable hair colour.

She smiled and waved, "Hey Nel, Grimmjow." she greeted as the pair came up to her table, Nel smiling widely as she plopped down in the chair beside the redhead, letting several bags of shoes fall around her. Grimmjow cussed under his breath and took a seat next to his wife, crossing his arms.

"How've you been? I didn't get to talk to you much the other day," Nel shot Grimmjow a look, "Sorry about that by the way. And for Ulqui being such a meany."

Orihime giggled a bit at the name 'Ulqui'. Then she turned pink and looked from Nel to Grimmjow then back, "Wait, what d'you mean, he told you?"

Grimmjow scoffed and glanced at her, "The little fucker didn't have to, it was written all over your face when you slapped him. Which yes, I witnessed, much to my amusement." he said, grinning.

"Oh.." the redhead said, lowering her gaze to her dog.

"Don't worry though, Nel punched him in the face!" said the woman next to her, a wider grin spreading as she thrust her fist in the air proudly.

Orihime forced a smile, and continued stroking the german-shepherds fur, then looked up when Grimmjow began to say, "He may act like an emotionless little fucker, which for the most part, he is, but if he really didn't care he woulda left you in that hotel room and never spoke to you again-' he winced, then met the glare of Nel, and added, "Not that he's ever done that..." in the most convincing voice he could muster, while Nel went back to smiling innocently as if she hadn't just shoved her heel into his leg.

"Ulqui's just got commitment issues." Nel continues with a laugh.

Orihime didn't feel any better from what they said, _so what if he had commitment issues.. he's still an asshole.. its not like I was gonna fawn all over him.. _After a moment of silence, Nel asked, "So.. what are you up to today?"

"Um.. well, I've been looking for a job for the past two days, but nowhere seems to be hiring at the moment." she replied with a frown.

"Oh, I'm sorry Hime," Nel responded, in a voice a little more comforting than childish, "OH! I know! You can come work at the garage with Grimmy and me!"

Both Orihime and Grimmjow gave her blank looks, then the redhead laughed nervously, waving her hands in front of her face, "No, no no, thats okay, I mean.. I don't even know anything about cars.. and um-

"Perfect! I'll talk to Aizen!" exclaimed Nel, oblivious to Orihime's opposition as she rose from her seat, and picked up her bags, "Come along Grimmy! I saw a dress sale down the street! Bye-bye for now Hime!"

Grimmjow shook his head and got up from his chair, obviously not wanting to follow his wife to dress-shop, but did so anyway. Pausing beside the redhead, he told her an address, ".. he lives in apartment twenty-four." he continued walking, adding, "Don't give up on him so easily." before disappearing in the crowd, leaving Orihime stunned.

_What does he mean, 'Don't give up on him so easily' ! I DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING! _Her thoughts raged on, causing her to quietly huff and stand up suddenly, slinging her bag around her shoulders and beckoning her dog to follow her out of crowd, she had never once needed to put him on a leash, and they retreated to her car.

It had been a couple hours since her encounter with Nel and Grimmjow. She had been highly doubting the thought of getting a job at the garage. She sat crossed legged on her sofa, her dog resting loyally beside her, licking his paws. The phone ringing drew her attention from the television and she stretched her arm out to pick up the phone.

"Hello?" she spoke into the phone, muting the TV.

"_Hello, is this Orihime Inoue?" _asked a man's voice.

"Um.. yes, it is.." she answered, the voice sounded familiar..

"_Wonderful, this is Sosuke Aizen, owner of Las Noches Auto Repair,"_ her eyes widened, "_I have been compelled by Neliel to hire you. Is it true that you are looking for a job?"_

"U-uh, yeah..."

"_Are you available to come by tomorrow for an interview?"_

"Y-yes." she choked out, unable to believe what she was being told.

"_Come by around 2:00 then. This is just a formality though, I have already decided to hire you. The job is yours if you want it. I look forward to our meeting, good day Ms. Inoue."_

"Bye, thank you.." he hung up before she could say anything else.

Pressing the off button on the phone and setting it down beside her, she was in complete shock. Not only had it been unexpected, it had been quick. Nel worked fast.. and now she was going to be working with her, and Grimmjow, and... Ulquiorra. She deadpanned. _Dammit. _She ran her fingers through her hair thoughtfully, _Maybe I could just refuse.. but then who knows how long it would take me to get a job.. _She looked down at the canine beside her, who was looking at her with his bright brown eyes, she sighed, _I guess I have to, to take care of us both._ She sat for several minutes, twirling her hair around in her fingers, then the Ulquiorra's address popped in her head.

Emerging from her bedroom fifteen minutes later, dressed in shorts and a loose V-neck, she grabbed her purse and went for the door, "I'll be back, Butters." she called, then left the small apartment.

Arriving at the three-story apartment complex, Orihime sat in her car for several minutes, debating whether she should go home or not. _What the hell am I gonna say... 'We slept together, you were a total ass about it, no worries'? Was she gonna ask to be friends with this asshole? _She scoffed. After much thought she got out of her car and glanced around before heading towards the staircase. She made it to the third floor, noting the numbers as she walked along. Arriving at the 24th door, she wrung her hands in front of her. Biting her lip she turned away, then turned back. Several seconds passed before she knocked twice on the door. She waited, fidgeting, and heard no movement from inside. She turned and sighed, "Must not be home." she concluded to herself, feeling a little relieved as she began to walk back until,

"Woman?" called a monotone voice.

She whipped around quickly, "Yes!" she squeaked.

He gave her a curious look, "What are you doing here?"

"U-um.. well, I uh.." she laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head, "I'm here to see you.. obviously."

His expression showed slight shock, he had not expected to see the woman again, especially not at his own door, "Come in." he replied flatly, leaving his door open as he retreated back into his apartment.

She entered slowly, examining her surroundings. He had a very well kept place, but it appeared quite plain. There wasn't much colour aside from black and white, a few dashes of green or grey in the form of a blanket or cushion here and there. There were two large shelves on either side of a plasma TV, stocked full of books. She closed the door behind her and proceeded towards the kitchen area, where she had seen him disappear in. The place was rather spacious, no doubt expensive. She paused beside a black piano, to her surprise it was dusty, looking as though it hadn't been touched in months. She bit her lip and continued walking.

"Would you like a Coke, woman?" he asked as she entered the kitchen. She nodded and sat down at the two-person table against the wall.

He sat down across from her, setting a glass bottle of Coke in front of her, and twisting the cap easily off of his own. She did the same, having a bit more difficulty getting hers open, but after a couple minutes succeeded. She smiled and looked up, catching an amused look on Ulquiorra's face.

"You have a nice place.." she commented, taking a gulp of her Coke.

He nodded, "Thank you." he responded, then looked at her, "Is there a reason you're here?"

"Um, yes." she paused, trying to put her next words together, then noticed the black and purple bruise on his jaw, "Did Nel punch you that hard?"

"Yes, she is a lot stronger than she looks. Result of fighting from a young age. You should see her take down Grimmjow. Its rather amusing." he glanced at her, "Speaking of my abused face, your slap-

"Oh, right, um, sorry about that.." she paused, "Wait, no I'm not.."

He sighed, "I didn't even feel it, I suggest you take self-defense lessons. You hit like a small child."

She scowled at him, clearly taken aback by his callousness, "Would you like me to try again?"

He smirked at her, then gave her a look to continue explaining why she was in his apartment.

"O-oh, right," she said, catching the look, "I wanted to suggest that we forget what happened between us a few nights ago.. and be friends."

"Is it that easy to forget?" he asked, a playful tone coming out, as he ignored the stinging feeling he got in his chest.

She turned pink, "Um-

"As for the 'friends' part, sure, why not." he continued flatly, then looked at her, "Don't expect me to go out of my way to keep in touch."

She giggled quietly, "Okay." she said, "That won't be a problem though, it seems we'll be working together from now on."

He choked on the stream of Coke going down his throat and looked at her skeptically, "What?" he choked.

She gave him a sly smile, "Apparently Nel convinced Aizen to hire me. I met up with her and Grimmjow earlier today, unexpectedly... and I mentioned I was having a hard time finding a job, and she said she'd talk to your boss, I did protest though.. but I don't think she noticed.."

"I see."

She smiled, "I'm supposed to go in tomorrow to talk with Aizen. I'm a little nervous.."

"He is a very intimidating man.." Ulquiorra remarked distantly, staring off at the wall.

They sat in silence for several minutes. Orihime finished her Coke and stared at the pale man before her for a few seconds, then began to stand, "I should get home, I don't like leaving Mr. Butters" a flash of amusement from the dog's name crossed Ulquiorra's face, "alone longer than necessary."

He nodded, picking the two empty bottles off the table and walking towards the sink. "Do you work tomorrow?" she asked.

"I do."

"Cool, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then.." she said cheerfully, pausing at the exit to the kitchen, she glanced back, "Goodnight, Ulquiorra."

"Goodnight, woman." he returned flatly.

She smiled and left the apartment. He leaned against the counter with his arms crossed and his eyes shut. After several minutes he opened his eyes and pushed off the counter. He paused at the doorway, and before switching off the light, "So, she's joining our league of idiots.. This should be interesting."


	7. Wedding Extra

**Authors Note:** I wanted to add more to the wedding reception. Its mostly a pointless drabble, but it has slight significance to the story, I hope this is enjoyable and Chapter 7 won't be far behind.. your reviews are greatly appreciated, by the way. ;) -

Wedding Extra

Ulquiorra had been outwardly reluctant to meet more of Orihime's eccentric friends, which only earned him a slight pout from the woman before they parted ways. He went to sit at the bar, settling onto a secluded barstool at the end of the counter, leaning his back against it, gazing at his surroundings with little interest.

Orihime went on by herself to mingle with everyone. Many of them she hadn't seen in quite a while. She was almost overwhelmed to the point of fainting at all the greetings she had gotten on her way through the crowd. After what felt like an hour, or more, she finally made it to the table that seated the busty strawberry-blonde she had been looking for,

"Rangiku! I've been looking for you for ages!" she exclaimed as she sat down next to her, smiling brightly, earning a brighter smile and crushing embrace from the older woman. They had seen each other a few hours ago, but acted now as if it had been months..

Then she heard a fake pout from the other side of her friend,

"Aw, Hime, didn't cha miss me too?"

Orihime giggled, and leaned on the table to get a better look, "Its very good to see you as well, Gin."

Ulquiorra's attention was now on a white-haired teenage boy at the other end of the bar, slight amusement graced his stoic face, as he listened the boy yell at the bartender,

"I. am. not. a. little. KID!" he said in a tone that was only an octave underneath shouting, he then whipped out his wallet and shoved his I.D. in the bartender's face, "See! I'm twenty-two years old!"

The bartender's eyes widened as he looked at the I.D., then back at the white-haired boy in front of him, then he smiled, "My apologies, _sir._ What would you like, a beer-

"Actually, I do not intend to drink _alcohol_," he shot the bartender a glare, "I was just making it a clear point that I _could_ if I wanted to."

The older man raised an eyebrow, "Is that so," he smirked, "what is it that I can serve you to_ drink,_ then?"

The white-haired male frowned sheepishly and looked away, crossing his arms, "I would like apple juice, thank you."

The older man let out a stifle of mocking laughter, causing the younger man to glare up at him again, a slight pink tone to his cheeks, "Its not for me!"

The bartender put his hands up as he pretended to be scared, still grinning mockingly, "Alright, Alright, I'll get you you're_ apple juice_."

In a matter of seconds the young man received the apple juice, and Ulquiorra's eyes followed him back to where he sat down at one of the various round tables and handed the bottled juice to small black-haired girl, she looked about the same age as him, if not younger, and kissed him on the cheek, immediately relaxing his serious expression. Ulquiorra noticed that the two weren't alone at the table, there was the unmistakable hair-colour and face to match to Orihime, who was talking and giggling with a woman beside her, although he couldn't quite make her out, then his view was completely blocked,

"You're Ulquiorra, right?" said the man in front of him, "I'm Uryu Ishida, I don't think we were properly introduced.."

Ulquiorra turned averted his gaze to look at nothing in particular, "There was no need, from the woman's description of you, I knew immediately who you were." he responded flatly, then glanced at the dark-haired man beside him, "She spoke very highly of you."

Uryu adjusted his glasses, obviously surprised by the remark, "Really.. she did.., um, what did she say?" he asked, trying to hide his eager tone, but failed.

"From what I didn't succeed in blocking out, I believe she said she thinks of you as a very important friend of hers, and was glad that your brief romantic relationship didn't ruin the original friendship between the two of you." he said flatly, then hearing an audible "Oh." next to him he added, "She's has a habit of explaining her past life and the people involved in it with great detail."

Uryu chuckled softly, "She certainly has an open and talkative personality.."

"Annoyingly so."

"She never shies away from speaking about herself or what she feels.. except when it comes to her brother that is.."

Ulquiorra's gaze snapped back to focus on the man beside him, which made it a clear unasked question to Uryu, "Of course, you will have to inquire about that yourself." And with that, Ulquiorra was left alone at the bar, pondering for a moment, _so she's lost family,.. I suppose we do have something in common.._ he felt the presence of the red-haired woman,

"Come on, at least sit with me?" she pleaded, taking my hand.

"I never said I wouldn't." he replied bluntly and got to his feet, receiving a bright smile from the woman before he was dragged along to the table that hosted the white-haired boy, amongst others..

"Rangiku, Gin, Toshiro, and Momo," she gestured to the table, "this is Ulquiorra."

They were met with welcoming 'hellos', and proceeded to sit down between Rangiku and Toshiro.

"Well, well, Hime, it seems you've been busy, finding such a handsome boyfriend." said the strawberry-blonde as she winked at the now reddening woman beside him.

She waved her hands up in front her face, "No, no no, he's not my boyfriend!" she amended, received with a chuckle from Rangiku. _Why does everyone keep assuming that?_ She bit her nails, then glanced up at Ulquiorra, _He doesn't seem to mind it though... but he'd probably never show it if he did.._

"You're a peculiar lookin' fellow, aren't cha?" mused the silver-haired man across the table. Ulquiorra scanned the man's features, his ever-so-closed eyes and fox-like grin.

He smirked, "I could say the same to you." he responded flatly.

Gin's grin grew, if it were possible, "Touche."

A while had passed since he last spoke, as he listened to the conversations around him, his arms crossed as he leaned back in his chair. He had briefly thought about leaving, going to the casino, anywhere other than where he was right now, in a room full of strangers, but he couldn't bring himself to leave. So he sighed inwardly, and continued through the night in his usual stoic expression.

"I think its time for you to have a drink Hime!" exclaimed Rangiku, already in a drunken stupor herself.

The redhead giggled, "No thanks, you know I don't like to drink.."

"Oh come on!" urged the blonde, "Just have one, pwease? For me?"

Orihime sighed, then smiled, "Sure, just one though." she said firmly. The blonde squealed and skipped off to the bar, stumbling slightly with every step.

Ulquiorra sat and watched the woman gulp down the fruity beverage once it was given to her, a pleasant look gracing her features. She licked her lips and sat the glass down, "Mmm, that was yummy." she said with a giggle.

"Would ya like another one?" asked Rangiku, slurring her speech slightly, smiling at her friend.

Orihime thought for a moment, then giggled again, "Sure, I suppose I'll just make it last a bit longer..." she looked at Ulquiorra, "Do you want a drink?"

There was a short silence, "Sure.." he replied. He never minded drinking alcohol, although it wasn't a favourite pastime. He couldn't think of a time he went to the bar with Grimmjow and hadn't had to, in the end, breakup a fight between the hot-headed blunette and some random drunk man, and in some cases, woman. He glanced to see an expectant look from Orihime as she now stood, slowly proceeding towards the bar. He sighed, "A beer will do, woman." he paused, "Thanks."

She was clearly surprised by his last word, but said nothing as she continued walking away. His gaze followed her retreating figure, sizing her up involuntarily, but not to his dislike. Feeling eyes on him, he glanced to his left to find the curvy blonde looking at him, smiling mischievously, "My, my, opposites certainly do attract, don't they."

He gave her a blank look as she her smile grew wider, and she then stood up, "Come Gin, we've got people to see." she said, stumbling to get grip on her posture, Gin trailed behind her swiftly, and they disappeared in the crowd. It took him only a few seconds to realize he had been left alone at the table. Then Orihime returned, we Tatsuki and Chad trailing behind her, and they all sat around the table, Orihime sitting much closer to Ulquiorra as she had been before.

"Where did everyone go?" she asked, then added teasingly, "You didn't scare them off, did you?"

"I'm not sure where the little ones went off to," he paused at Orihime's giggle, then continued, "The other two just left a moment ago, the woman said they had people to see."

Orihime nodded, "Hmm, well I hope I get to see Rangiku before we leave tomorrow, I hardly ever see her anymore.." she pouted.

It was all too clear to him when Orihime went for her third glass of whatever fruity drink she was so fond of, that her "one drink" rule had been forgotten. He sighed inwardly, listening to the animated conversation going on between the two women at the table with little understanding. None of what they were saying made any sense. He glanced at the now empty glass in front of the redhead, _This night isn't going to end well..._


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Have a seat, Ms. Inoue." Aizen said as she entered his office, returning his kind smile. She sat down in the leather chair across from him, a large wooden desk dividing them. "How are you today?"

"I'm great, thanks. And yourself?" she replied, trying to return his formality in her own voice.

He smiled, "I'm well. Thank you, Ms. Inoue."

"You can just call me Orihime, if you'd like.."

"Alright,_ Orihime_, I take it you've decided to accept my job offer?"

She nodded, "Yes, yes of course." she responded, fidgeting.

"Good, good," he said in a low tone. She could tell what Ulquiorra meant about Aizen being intimidating, she felt as if she was suffocating in his presence, "Is it also safe to assume you have no prior experience in this field of work?"

She nodded, feeling slightly embarrassed.

He chuckled, "No worries, Orihime, you're going to fit in nicely here." he said, "For the first few days, you will be trained under the instruction of Ulquiorra, as I've heard you two became quite, close?"

She felt the blood rushing quickly to her cheeks, and he continued, "Congratulations, you are now one of my valued employees. If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to knock. Ulquiorra is waiting outside my door, I've asked him to show you around before you leave, lets not keep him waiting.." he finished with a slight malicious tone.

She nodded rigidly and stood from her chair, muttering a 'thank you' before exiting the office. She gasped for breath as soon as she closed the door behind her. She resolved to avoid being alone with that man at all costs. Something about him was.. off, to say the least.

"Woman, are you feeling alright?" asked a dry voice.

She looked up to see him leaning against the banister, hands in pockets, his eyes searching her face with only a glint of concern. "Yes, I'm fine." she replied, blushing as she looked him over, _why does he always have to look so damn hot.. he's making it difficult for me to forget my feelings..._

Straightening up, he began walking along the banister, "Come along, woman, I don't have all day." he said in his usual bored tone as he kept walking, hearing the woman scuffling feet behind him.

"I have a name you know." she said, entwining her fingers behind her back as she fell in step with him.

"I'm aware."

"So you just plan on calling me 'woman' for the rest of time.." she said, slightly annoyed.

"It was the plan," he replied bluntly, giving her a sideways glance, "Orihime.."

Her eyes brightened as she looked at him, "Yes?"

He smirked, "Don't trip down the stairs." he continued, and began descending the spiral staircase, ignoring her glare. She followed after him, slightly pouting, _Of course the first time he says my name it's followed by something condescending... although.. I liked the way he said it.._ She chided herself for increasing her feelings for him, that she really wished she didn't have. As they stepped of the staircase, he gestured her through a door on their left,

"This is the general office area," he said as they entered a small white room that housed a desk, a water-cooler, and a door with a sign that read, 'BATHROOM'. "This is where we do the paperwork and such..."

He turned, leading her out of the office, shutting the door behind him. He was about to say something when-

"Hime!" Nel exclaimed, her eyes wide with a big grin plastered on her face as she appeared in front of Orihime and began squeezing her in an embrace, "I'm so so happy you got the job, I didn't think that Aizen would say no, but there was still a chance.. OH, this is so exciting, you and me can become the bestest of friends and-

"Not if you continue to smother her to death." Ulquiorra cut in, his voice louder than usual, but still as disinterested as always.

"Oh-" Nel said, letting the redhead out of the embrace for a moment before squeezing her again, "AHH! I'm soo sorry, are you alright-!

"You're making it worse." Ulquiorra cut in again.

Nel finally stopped and stepped away, leaving Orihime to cough and wobble a bit, being steadied by the pale man beside her. The redhead giggled, "You're strong" she commented, finally composing herself, Ulquiorra's hand retreating back to his pocket.

Nel laughed, "Yeah, sorry.."

"Its alright," Orihime replied, then gave her a serious look, "Just don't do it again, at least not so.. life-threatening.."

"Will do!" Nel said cheerfully, then turned and proceeded back to wherever she came from.

"Come along." Ulquiorra demanded flatly, walking ahead as if nothing happened, the redhead scurrying to fall in step with him again.

Ulquiorra pointed out a few areas of the large garage, briefly explaining what they are used for, not bothering to stop walking at any point. This caused Orihime to become a little flustered, trying to absorb the information and keep up with him at the same time. After a couple minutes, Orihime sighted a dark-skinned blonde woman with a pixie cut talking to a taller man with brown wavy hair, who was leaning against a metal pillar, looking as if he was going to fall asleep. Ulquiorra noticed this as well and lead them to the couple, "Tia, Starrk," he greeted tonelessly, then gestured to the redhead, "This is Orihime."

Both Starrk and Tia gave her faint, but genuine, smiles, "Hey there, you must be the one Nel was nagging the Boss about." Starrk said lazily, his eyes drooping as he pushed off the pillar to stand almost straight and put out his hand.

Orihime chuckled shyly, and shook his hand, "Nice to meet you.." she responded, then glanced at Tia, and added cheerfully, "Both of you."

"STARRK!" yelled a voice from behind said man, and he sighed before his shoulders were pounced on by a small blonde haired girl.

Starrk grunted and looked up, "Lilinette," he said in an annoyed voice, "What are you doing here, school isn't out yet-

"I had free track, so I left early!" she exclaimed, jumping over his head and landing nimbly on her feet, revealing her scant attire of black shorts and a loose cut-off yellow tee shirt. She put her hands on her hips, "I'm hungry."

"Why ya tellin' me?" Starrk asked lazily, leaning against the pillar again, only to be kicked in the leg,

"You're my guardian! You're supposed to feed me!" Lilinette argued, crossing her arms.

Starrk composed himself, running his hand through his hair and sighing, "Fine, lets go eat.. Tia, d'you wanna come?"

Tia nodded, wordlessly following the lazy man and tiny blonde out of the garage.

Orihime gave Ulquiorra a look, "What was that about?" she asked.

"Lilinette is Starrk's younger sister, and she is rather aggressive." he explained, continuing to walk through the garage, "Starrk takes care of her, considering their parents absence, and she comes by everyday after school demanding to be either fed or entertained. You'll get used to it."

He glanced at the woman to see a sad look on her face and sighed quietly, "There's no need to pity Lilinette, if anything, she's quite content with their situation-

"Thats cuz Starrk's a fuckin' push-over." interrupted a voice, and Orihime turned to see the lanky, still in her opinion 'creepy-looking' man, coming up to them. She glanced to Ulquiorra, who had his eyes closed, seeming a little annoyed by the other man's sudden appearance. "I'm Nnoitra." he said, causing her to gasp at his position in front of her, emphasizing his height as he hovered over her, a malicious grin on his face, "And you are?"

"I'm, uh, O-Orihime," she said with a nervous tone, forcing a sweet smile as she craned her neck to look up at him, "its nice to meet you."

Ulquiorra's eyes snapped open and glared at Nnoitra, the man's eyes clearly undressing the woman before him. In a sudden surge of protectiveness, Ulquiorra swiftly put his arm around the Orihime's waist, prompting her to keep walking as he shot the lanky man a piercing glare saying, 'Don't even think about it.' He received a scoff and an eye roll before Nnoitra disappeared from view.

After walking a couple feet, Ulquiorra dropped his hand from her waist and returned it to his pocket. She found herself for missing his touch as it left her hip. _No! Stop it, he's a jerk!_ A voice in her head reprimanded,_ You're right._ She agreed, then looked at him, almost longingly,_ A very attractive jerk..very.._ She continued to argue with herself, ignoring his continuous explanations of the areas they passed.

"Woman?" She didn't hear him, so he said a little louder, "Orihime."

Her silent argument ceased as she looked at him, "Yes?"

"You're doing that thing again."

"What thing?" she responded, still appearing to be spaced out.

He gathered this, then turned away and continued walking, "Nevermind, I suppose you're just being yourself." he said, with a hint of condescension in his voice.

She glared at him, taking what he said to be an insult, J_ERK! Big jerk..._ unattractive_ jerk.._ She tried to convince herself of the 'unattractive' part, but failed miserably, concluding that she would always be attracted to him, no matter how much he infuriated her.

Eventually they arrived at the other side of the building, and he pointed to a door, "That door leads to the underground extension of the garage, it serves as Aaroniero's private workshop," he glanced at the Orihime, "if you value your life, you will not go in there unless he asks you to."

Her eyes widened a fraction at his seriousness, and nodded. He then added, "Although, I wouldn't count on that, he's very private and dislikes the sun to a loathe-some degree. We only _see_ him at meetings or when he leaves at night.."

"Oh," she paused, "why the emphasis on 'see'?"

He smirked, "If you ever meet him, you'll find out." he replied, then turned the knob of the door in front of them.

They entered a spacious room, it had white walls and hard marble floor. There was a couch on either side of the room, a ping-pong table, a refrigerator, a long table with numerous chairs attached, and a small kitchen area in another corner.

"This is obviously the employees lounge." he stated a matter-of-factly, then glanced at her awed expression.

"This is nicer than my apartment.." she commented, eyes wide.

"That's a bit depressing." Ulquiorra commented, then pointed her attention to a door on the opposite wall, "That's Zommari's meditation room, why he has one here, I do not know, but if you-

"Value my life I won't go in there?"

Showing faintest sign of a smile, he corrected her, "I was going to say if you like to meditate, he doesn't mind company."

"Oh.." she said quietly, blushing.

"Although, I don't recommend you disturb his meditative state." he added, causing the woman to giggle, and then he pointed to another door, "And thats another bathroom."

She nodded, "So, is there anyone else here to meet?"

He thought for a moment, "It does seem deserted here today, a few may have taken the day off. But everyone seems to show up at least once a day." he replied, then ushered her out of the room, "You can go home now if you like."

"Really?... um, okay.." she said, reluctant to leave. _Stop getting attached!_ She reprimanded, giving the pale man a look, "So, Aizen said that you'll be training me?"

He nodded, "That's the plan." he said flatly, looking off in another direction.

"So I'll see you tomorrow then?"

He nodded once more, sparing her a glance, "Goodbye," Her gaze followed his retreating figure for several seconds before he looked over his shoulder, causing her to blush, "Orihime.." he finalized, continuing his casual stride, and disappearing from view.**  
**


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The first day of her new job had been uneventful. They didn't get any new customers, so only she, Ulquiorra, Grimmjow, and Nel were present. Aizen came by to check on things once, halfway through the day, but had only stayed for a couple minutes. As a result, Ulquiorra gave Orihime a brief showing of the various tools they use on a regular basis, she and Nel bonded, Grimmjow and Nel argued over something stupid, she demanded divorce, and after a half hour, they apparently had sex on one of the couches. Orihime figured this out when she tried to enter the employees lounge, but the door was locked, and she could hear definite moans of pleasure coming from the inside.

She had scurried away from the door and back to where Ulquiorra was, and he gave her a curious look. He then assumed what was going on and explained that Grimmjow will occasionally cause the arguments on purpose for the sake of having makeup sex, saying it is incredible. Which Grimmjow deemed necessary to tell Ulquiorra against his will. Orihime was slightly shocked and slightly amused by this, and also resolved to never sit on those couches again.

"Can I see your phone?" She asked a few minutes later.

He raised an eyebrow, about to ask why, but suppressed it and handed her his phone. She admittedly just wanted to play with it, ever since she saw him talking on it when they were on the road. It was so cool and sleek, she flipped the black phone open, and began pressing the buttons. He eyed her curiously, then heard a _Beep_! sound. She flipped the phone closed and handed it back to him, beaming.

"What did you do?"

"I sent myself a text." she replied.

"And why did you do that?"

She giggled, "So I have your number, silly." she replied, then touched her stomach at the low grumble, "I guess I should go eat.." and she bounded off, twisting around long enough to add, "It's under 'W'."

His eyebrows drew together as he watched her skip towards the lounge. He flipped open his phone and searched through the contacts until he found the word 'Woman'. He almost had the urge to smile, almost. He clicked on it. There was what he assumed was her number. He then proceeded to change 'Woman' to 'Orihime', and slid his phone back in his pocket.

The second day had been a bit more exciting, but only to a point. She mostly just observed Ulquiorra as he worked on one of the vehicles they had gotten that day. He said it was only minor damage to the engine and was an easy fix, which she only half-heartedly listened to as she fixed most of her attention to his figure, that was bent over as he fixed whatever he was fixing.. Her eyes travelled his red and black plaid shirt, to his black jeans, that fit him _perfectly_, back around to his half hidden face, and so on. She was so mesmerized that she was unaware of her hand slipping and her pinky finger being sliced open on a sliver of rust, "Ow!" she cried out, catching his attention, causing him to almost hit his head on the raised hood before turning to her,

"What happened?"

Her eyes went wide as she bit her lip and thrust her bleeding finger into his view. He sighed, wiping his hands on a rag and then lead her away from the car, towards the employees lounge. He brought out a first aid kit and sat down beside her at the table and began to clean her cut. She bit her lip as the he did so, but was surprised at how gentle he was being. Her eyes glazed over as she watched him work on her delicate pinky, a smile gracing her lips.

Nnoitra and Grimmjow, who had been playing ping pong, rather aggressively, and Szayel who was sitting on a couch reading a book, all exchanged looks, Grimmjow and Szayel grinning as they watched Ulquiorra and Orihime, who were oblivious to the looks they were getting. When the bandaging was finished, the two got up, and the other men in the room resumed what they were doing as if they had never stopped.

On the way back to the area they, meaning Ulquiorra, had been working in, Orihime skidded on a puddle of oil, only to be caught by Ulquiorra's arm before she toppled over, causing her to blush. She straightened up, putting her caution alerts on full blast, while Ulquiorra shook his head,

"You're too accident prone for this work environment." he commented flatly, and then soon resumed fixing the car, as she resumed checking him out, only now she was more cautious of her surroundings. He was completely aware of her ogling, and could honestly say he didn't mind it one bit.

The third day however, Ulquiorra finally surrendered. "Orihime, that's a wrench." he said flatly, his eyes boring into hers as he crossed his arms, "What did I ask for?"

Her cheeks went pink, "U-um, pliers?" He nodded, she laughed nervously, "These aren't pliers..." she concluded, receiving another nod from him as she put the tool back down, her eyes searching over the varied selection of tools beside her, "Um.." she looked back at him, letting another nervous laugh escape her, "I guess a spaced out when you showed them to me.. sorry.."

He sighed, picking up the tool he needed, waving it in front of her face, and returning to work. The woman was completely incompetent when it came to this, but he couldn't tell Aizen that, then she could lose her job, and it'd be his fault. No. That wasn't going to happen, he'd just have to find her competency somewhere else... He stopped for a moment, uttering in a low but audible voice, "I'd prefer you to wax."

When she heard this, her face went pink as she squeaked out, "What?"

He turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow, immediately gathering what she had taken from his comment, and sighed, "Wax the _cars."_ he amended, seeing comprehension wash over her face, "That's what Nel does, mostly. You can ask her to show you the procedure."

She nodded, "Um, wait, don't you know how?" she asked, "Can't you show me?"

He shrugged, "I could, but I don't really want to. Besides, Nel is better at it than me, she's much more thorough. And I think she'd like the female company. Tia can only stand her childish antics for so long, so she is usually just left with the guys." he glanced at her, "And, you are very childish at times yourself, so it'd be pleasant for both of you."

"Oh.." She wouldn't mind spending time with Nel, but she was getting used to always being around Ulquiorra, she didn't really want to leave. _This will help you get over him_. Said a voice in her head. She nodded, agreeing to both, "Okay, I'll go find Nel then."

He nodded, receiving a smile before she proceeded to seek out the aqua-haired woman. He sighed quietly. He was glad to be alone, in part.. A small part of him already missing the woman's presence.

"And that's all there is to it!" Nel said, smiling widely at her friend. She had just finished demonstrating how to wax a car to perfection, and Orihime was relieved to know she would be able to do this job without a problem. Nel's company was refreshing as well, they both talked animatedly to one another about the oddest things, causing Grimmjow to give them bewildered looks from time to time as he worked a few feet away from them. _So, she's finally met her match.._ He thought to himself with a grin, glad that his wife had finally found an equally eccentric person to share her thoughts and time with. He loved her to death, but there was only so much 'Grimm and Nel time' he could take before his mind was on the verge of exploding.

Orihime listened intently as Nel described the action film she saw the night before, she almost reenacted one of the death scenes, using Grimmjow as a prop, before he yelled at her to leave him to do his work. She was on the verge of tears, and most likely another divorce demand, before Orihime brought her back to the conversation by asking what happened next. Nel quickly recovered and planted herself back on the floor, continuing to clean her tools, talking rapidly. Orihime's mind often wavered to Ulquiorra, even though they were still in the same building, she couldn't help but miss his company. She was upset with herself for not being able to suppress her feelings. It reminded her of being sixteen again, longing for Ichigo, even when she knew he would never feel the same way about her. Although, she never slept with Ichigo, thank god, that would have bad for her and Rukia's friendship, and ultimately Ichigo's friendship as well.

Now she was almost twenty-five years old, falling back into old habits. It was pathetic. She sighed inwardly, realizing Nel had stopped talking and was now looking at her with her head tilted slightly to the side, displaying the question, 'Whatcha thinkin' about?'. Orihime smiled, "I think I'm gonna go outside for a few minutes, I'll be back." she said, standing up and smoothing her tee shirt and shorts out before leaving the garage.

She sat on the hood of her car, one leg crossed over the other, leaning back on one arm while the other's hand held a cigarette to her lips. He thought she looked like a car advertisement, the way her hair blew past her shoulders in the light breeze, the way her smooth legs shone in the sunlight, and just her overall breathtaking appearance that made him want to take her right then and there, on the hood of her car. He proceeded towards his car, which was parked next to hers,

"Hey." she greeted, a trail of smoke leaving her lips as she smiled at him.

He nodded, opening the driver's side of his car and picking up a prescription bottle. He straightened up, "How'd it go with Nel?" he asked as he shook out two pills and threw the bottle back in the car,

"It was good! I think waxing cars is my true calling." she replied, only a small hint of sarcasm in her voice.

The car door slammed shut and in seconds he appeared in front of her, eyeing her water bottle, "Do you mind.." he started, glancing back and forth from her to the bottle.

She grinned and shook her head, "Go ahead."

He sat on the hood of her car and popping the pills in his mouth, taking a gulp of water. They travelled down his throat, scraping the sides, much to his discomfort. He then settled more comfortably, raising a leg up so his foot rested on the edge, and leaned back on his elbows, closing his eyes. The accumulated sweat from working had nearly soaked his shirt completely, as it stuck to him, emphasizing his chiseled torso to Orihime's wandering eyes. She smiled, then asked, "What were the pills for?"

"My lungs. They apparently prevent me from having a stroke." he replied aloofly.

"That's.. unsettling." she responded, slight worry gracing her features.

He opened his eyes to examine her face, "There's no need to worry. Unless I over exert myself during lung-straining activities."

She let out a laugh, "I can't imagine you doing many 'straining' activities.. Well, I suppose you do sometimes during work.."

His lips twitched into a crooked smile, his emerald orbs focused on her as he sat up, "I do recall taking an extra dose almost immediately after we had sex-" she glared at him, 'I said to forget about it.' written across her face. This only prompted him to continue, out of spite, as he leaned towards her, "The second time." he said softly into her ear, before he slid off the car, shoved his hands in his pockets and headed towards the building. Her face had gone red at this point, vivid images of their intimate night together replaying in her mind. He was never going to let her forget, she knew that now, and he hoped that he would always remember.

"Excuse me, I'm here to pick up my car," said a broad shouldered, tanned, blond man, who had walked up to Orihime. His eyes looked her over modestly, soaking in her image before his eyes flicked back to hers, he smiled, "It's a red mustang.."

Orihime smiled welcomingly, "What's your name?" she asked, professionality washing over her.

"Luke Capria." he replied, his smile never faltering.

"Alright, I'll be right back." she said cheerfully as she bounded towards the offices, almost colliding with Grimmjow, who was coming the other way, before skipping around him. Grimmjow's eyes fell on Luke, whose gaze was fixed on the curvy redhead. Grimmjow gave him a glare that an older brother would give a guy that was checking out his younger sister, grunted, and kept walking, now proceeding towards Ulquiorra, who was examining the rear end of an old chevy, his arms crossed. The blue-haired man soon enough appeared next to his acclaimed best friend, leaning against the truck. There was a stretch of silence, in which Grimmjow watched Orihime talk with the customer, handing him a clipboard to sign,

"Do you see what the fuck's happening over there!?" he said in a gruff voice, pointing towards the conversing pair in the distance.

Ulquiorra glanced at his friend, "What do you want, Grimmjow?" he asked in a bored tone.

Grimmjow glared at him, putting emphasis on his extended arm, Ulquiorra's eyes followed and landing on Orihime writing something down, then ripping it off the clipboard, handing it to the man in front of him, smiling. His eyes examined the man, and he concluded instantly, that this man was his complete opposite. Obviously in appearance, and no doubt in personality as well.

"Dude, you should go up and fuckin claim her, right now!" urged Grimmjow

"Grimmjow." Ulquiorra said in a harsh tone, causing the blunette to assume complete silence, Ulquiorra's eyes took one last glance at Orihime, and then he turned, trying to suppress the stinging in his chest, "She's not mine to claim."

…

"And here's your keys." Orihime said, letting his keys dangle for a second before letting them fall into his palm.

"Thank you." he seemed to hesitate, "Orihime, I was wondering if I could get your phone number?"

Orihime's eyes widened a fraction at his request. He saw this and quickly added, "Unless you're seeing someone..?"

Her gaze wavered to Ulquiorra, who was standing several feet away from them, his arms crossed as he stared at Grimmjow with absolute annoyance, she bit her lip, then smiled, "No, I'm not seeing anyone." she replied, and began writing her number on the blank form attached to the clipboard, then ripped the shred of paper off and handed it to him.

He smiled wider as he took the shred of paper, "I'll be calling you." he said, then proceeded towards his car.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

He heard an exasperated sigh from Grimmjow, who had appeared seconds before, grunting and crossing his arms. Ulquiorra sighed, peaking out from his place in the driver's side of his black cadillac. "What is it?" he asked disinterestedly, acknowledging his best friend's presence before returning attention to his broken disc player.

"Nel and Orihime, they are driving me insane, won't stop talking about this _date_ 'lil' Red's' got with that douchey lookin' guy from the other day." he replied without hesitation, not noticing Ulquiorra's grunt as he pulled his index finger away from his work, sucking the instant oozing blood with his lips, "Well, its mostly Nel asking a million questions a minute..." he peered at his friend, "Don't you have somethin' to say about it?"

Ulquiorra exited his car, "Seems I'm the only one doing work today.." he commented flatly.

"Okay, first, you little fucker, it doesn't count as work when its on yer own damn car," he seethed, "And second, is that really all you're upset about!"

Ulquiorra gave him a look, "Of course not," he held up his wounded finger for Grimmjow to see, "I seemed to have hurt my finger.."

Grimmjow gave him incredulous look, which Ulquiorra ignored and made his way to the lounge. As he entered, Nel left, a grin plastered on her face as she skipped past him, calling 'Grimmy's' name. He proceeded towards Orihime, who was leaning against the counter, her arms crossed as she looked pensively at the opposite wall. She took a startled notice to his presence when he opened the cabinet above her, and took out the first aid kit.

"What happened?" she asked, eyeing his finger as he cleaned the cut.

He thought for a moment, "I'm not exactly sure," he began in his flattest voice, "Grimmjow was saying something rather unnerving, then all of the sudden, ow."

She giggled softly, then frowned at his next words, "I hear you have a date.."

"Ugh.. yes.. tonight," she mumbled.

"That's not the excitement I expected.." he remarked, leaning against the counter.

She sighed, "Don't get me wrong, I'm excited.. I'm also nervous, I mean, I haven't been on an actual date in _years,_ I don't even know what to say, or do.. hell, I don't even know what to wear."

"I'm sure you'll look decent in anything."

She chuckled, "Gee, thanks," she replied sarcastically, looking up at him, "It's good to know I'll look 'decent'."

He moved closer until they were only a mere two inches apart, which didn't go unnoticed as she gave him a questionable look, he just smirked, "I wasn't aware you wanted me to confirm your beauty.." her cheeks went pink as he leaned in a bit, "I think you're beautiful, and you know you are too. Don't make such a fuss about it."

Her blush deepened as she got momentarily lost in his emerald pools, before he gave her a crooked smile and swiftly left the room. As soon the door was closed behind him, his smile went down to a full-fledged frown. He proceeded back to his car, attempting to ignore the ache in his chest, and failing miserably.

Meanwhile, back in the lounge, still leaning against the counter, Orihime's mind raged. She was pleased beyond words that he said he thought she was beautiful, and couldn't help but smile. At the same time, however, she fumed with annoyance. She wished he hadn't said anything at all,_ why couldn't he just say something impassive like usual_. She grunted, crossing her arms. She had to forget about him. She was back to dating, and hopefully it will become a recurring event. She sighed, pushing off the counter and sulkily walking out of the room, proceeding to leave the garage, her shift had ended an hour ago...

…

"Sooo, how was your date last night Hime?" Nel asked curiously, peaking around the rear-end of the car at the redhead, who was hard to work, waxing the red-painted vehicle.

Orihime slowed her work, and shot Nel a smile, "It was great. He's really.. nice.. and the restaurant he took me to was really elegant.. I figured it went well, we're going out again tomorrow night."

Nel squealed with delight, "That's great!"

Unknown to the two women, a certain stoic, pale man was listening intently two meters away from them, hiding behind a truck. He hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but hearing Nel's inquiry of the woman's date caused him to linger. He felt an all too familiar ache in his chest as he listened to Orihime's answer. She sounded so, _Happy._.. He could say he was glad for that, but only half-heartedly. He didn't understand this feeling, the feeling he had when he saw her giving that guy her number. The feeling he had when he heard she was going out with that guy. And the feeling he had now, only it was deeper this time, he got when she said those words. He sighed, closing his eyes as he leaned against the truck. He listened to the women giggle and talk animatedly about other things for several minutes, then retreated towards his own work area.

….

He couldn't fix anything today, and not only could he not fix things, he broke them even further. It started at the beginning of the week, his anger would build slightly every time he heard that name, whenever he saw her giggle and smile while talking about him, he couldn't understand why at first. Then, after three excruciating days, he realized. He was _jealous._ He denied it that whole day, all through his usual sleepless night, and in the end, he was forced to accept it. The days that followed were worse. His anger, jealousy, boiled in his chest.

"Damnit!" He seethed, casting the wrench to the cement with so much force, the cement itself cracked under the pressure of the tool colliding with it. He leaned forward on his hands, closing his eyes as he worked to calm down.

"Ulquiorra?"

His eyes snapped open, he composed himself quickly, resuming his usual stoic facade, and turned to her, replying as calmly as possible, "Yes?"

Her eyebrows were drawn together, slight worry etched into her beautiful features, "Are you okay?"

He sighed inwardly, "I'm fine." he replied, rubbing his eyes, "Is there something you need?"

She bit her lip, she could tell he was stressed about something, "Umm, I was just checking on you.. um, for no particular reason, I'll just-

"Orihime," he interrupted, her eyes met his gaze, "don't lie to me."

She smiled, "Okay, I was just gonna ask for a ride home.."

He raised an eyebrow, "What happened to your car?"

"Nothing, um, its at home. Luke drove me here this morning, and he said he would pick me up, but I can't get a hold of him, and its already an hour past the end of my shift.. and you're the only person here, well, except Aizen, but he kinda creeps me out and I didn't wanna ask him for a drive, and Nel and Grimmjow left a while ago.. but I can just wait a little longer, if you're busy-

"Cease your babbling woman, I'll drive you." he interrupted sharply, walking past her.

She giggled, following him out of the garage to his car. She had to admit, after spending those five days with Ulquiorra and his black cadillac, she missed the old beat up car, and even the silence that ensued in the man's presence. She hopped in the passenger side, and he started the car. She brought her feet up, rubbing them, "Ugh, my feet hurt.. we were busy today.."

"Indeed."

"We get our paychecks tomorrow, don't we?" she asked, positioning herself sideways in her seat, giving her a full view of her current driver. He nodded wordlessly, his eyes concentrated on the road ahead. She smiled as her heart lifted, only to be accompanied by a pang of guilt. She could hardly believe herself, here she was, in his car, with him, a man she knew full well she harbored feelings for. Although, if her recently acclaimed boyfriend had picked her up, she wouldn't of had to ask Ulquiorra for a drive in the first place.. she argued back and forth, her heart fluttering, then stinging, then fluttering. She grunted, catching his attention,

"Something wrong?"

She blushed, shaking her head, "No, no no, nothing's wrong.." she said unconvincingly.

He sighed, turning his attention back to the road, "You know I can see right through your lies."

She giggled, "I know." she replied, receiving a questionable look from him, "I also know you aren't one to pry. So I know I can get away with it."

He thought about this for a moment, "Is that so." His lips twitched upwards into a crooked smile as he glanced at her, "Then perhaps I've had a sudden change of heart.."

She giggled, but said nothing and checked her phone for any messages, sighing when there were none. His lips turned back down to a frown, "You curious where your _boyfriend_ is.." he assumed outloud.

She caught the way he said 'boyfriend' and giggled,_ Is he actually jealous?_ She mused, then replied, "Slightly. But he isn't the only person occupying my mind.."

He glanced curiously at her, but she was gazing out the window, deep in thought once more. Silence ensued for several minutes, until it dawned on him that he had no idea where he was going, "Orihime?"

"Hmm?" She acknowledged distantly.

"Where do you live?"

She snapped out her trance and observed her surroundings, then gave him a sheepish look, "Um.. on the other side of town..."

He slowed the car immediately, smoothly pulling over, glancing around, and proceeded to do a U-turn. Driving back the way they came, he looked at her, "Now, where do you live."

She giggled and replied quickly. They both silently admitted their joy over being stuck in the car for an extra fifteen minutes as silence ensued once more. It was the comfortable silence she missed, along with everything else she felt with him. Mentally slapping herself she shifted her sitting position and gazed out the window again. He found his anger had subsided completely since he began driving, he realized it was the woman's presence, and his heart lifted. He concluded that it was only going to add to his jealousy later on, but for now, he didn't care, and happily stole glances at her stunning figure. They arrived in front of her apartment complex too soon for his liking. She smiled brightly at him, "Thanks a lot for the drive."

He nodded, "It was no problem." he replied, glancing at her, "You're welcome."

Her smile widened, if possible, and she grabbed her bag, exiting the car. He felt instant emptiness wash over him and was about to start the engine again before, "Ulquiorra?"

He looked to his left to see her bent over, looking at him pleadingly, "Can you walk me to my door?"

He didn't hesitate to nod and get out of his car. They began walking towards the two-story building, and he caught her glancing nervously upwards, "What is it woman?"

She looked at him, then nodded towards a group of shady looking men occupying a portion of the second story balcony, "They always look at me weird, it gives me the creeps, and I have to pass through them to get to my door."

He nodded and followed her up the staircase. He couldn't help but focus his gaze on her rear end, which he had a perfect view of for the span of two minutes it took to reach the second balcony. She looked down at her feet as the passed through the mumbling group of smoke and alcohol smelling men. He kept a within a close, protective proximity of the redhead, eyes focused on the unknown off in the distance. The arrived in front of her door, and as she fumbled for her keys, he leaned against the banister with his hands in his pockets, gazing at her. She opened the door, about to go inside, as he was about to leave, then she stopped and looked at him, "Do you wanna stay for a bit?"

The question shocked him, as he almost stuttered, "What?" he replied.

She giggled, "If you have other plans than go, but we haven't really spent much time together.. and I kinda.. miss you.." Her gaze met his in a heart-melting stare,

"I don't have any pressing matters to attend to.." he replied aloofly, proceeding to enter the apartment.

She smiled, ignoring the reprimanding voice in her head as she let him walk past her, then followed, closing the door behind her and locking it. She walked through the apartment, turning on a light here and there, letting her small home become illuminated. Ulquiorra on the other hand, was having a staring match with her large german shepherd who lay on the couch. Neither of the two blinked during the two minutes it took for Orihime to re-enter the living room and let out a loud giggle, making her way to the couch to greet her beloved canine, "Mr. Butters! I missed you soo much today!" she exclaimed, hugging the dog affectionately.

Ulquiorra couldn't help the small smile that tugged at his lips as he observed the woman and her pet. The redhead realized she was being watched and immediately blushed, standing up and letting out an embarrassed laugh, "Sorry.. I forgot you were here for a moment."

He waved it off, "Its fine, I was quite intrigued by the amount of affection you have for it."

Her eyes widened, "He is not an 'it'! He's a dog, my loving loyal dog, Mr. Butters!"

His smile only grew wider, catching her off guard, "I didn't mean to offend you." he replied, still finding the dogs name amusing.

Orihime scratched the back of her head and giggled, "Sorry.. again. Gee, I'm a terrible host... I never have company... umm, do you want a drink?"

He nodded, and she ushered him towards the kitchen area. He took his seat at one of the bar stools attached to the island separating the living room and kitchen. He listened to her moving around, clinking glasses, opening and closing the fridge, letting his eyes wander around the small space. It was cluttered, not unclean.. but not very organized. There was the small plaid couch, occupied by a now sleeping dog, an outdated TV set on the opposite wall, a couple shelves that hosted various knick-knacks, dvds, tapes, books, etc.. His gaze fell on a small shrine in the corner of the room. Upon it was a photo of an older man with shoulder length black hair..

"My brother, Sora.." Orihime said suddenly, catching his attention. She had seen him looking at it and decided to answer the unspoken question. She sat on the stool beside him, sliding a glass of what looked like juice or soda towards him. He took a sip of the fruity drink, pleased by the taste.

"What happened to him.. if you don't mind my asking."

She was silent for a moment as she sipped her beverage, "He died in a car accident when I was fifteen.." she replied sullenly.

"I see."

She stared at him, usually someone would say 'I'm sorry' or something else, trying to be consoling. Not him, she smiled, feeling oddly comforted by his lack of sympathy. She knew he felt it, but was glad he didn't show it.

"What is this anyway?" he asked, eyeing the drink in his hands.

"Um.. grapefruit? I think.. or just fruit punch.." she replied, taking a gulp of her own to taste test it, "Mmm, yep, grapefruit." She smiled, "Do you like it?"

He nodded, tracing his thumb around the rim of the glass. There were several things he wanted to say, to tell her, to ask her, but they all got caught in his throat. He sighed inwardly, dreading the moment she'd ask him to leave.

"Can I ask why you were so angry earlier?"

"I'd prefer you didn't." He replied flatly.

She sighed, "Alright."

He looked at the saddened expression on her face. Forcing the words from his throat, he opened his mouth to answer her, then a knock sounded from her door, causing him to sigh and swallow the words again. He leaned back against the counter and watched Orihime go to the door.

She opened it to Luke, and her frown deepened. "Hey." he said, "Um.. I'm real sorry about being late, but I did show up, but the only person left was this guy dressed in all black, his face was covered too, he looked like a ninja or somethin'... anyways, he locked the door and left without saying anything, so I assumed you had already left-

Orihime turned to Ulquiorra, cutting Luke's speech off, "Do we work with someone who dresses like a ninja?" she asked him.

Ulquiorra thought for a moment, "I suppose Aaroniero fits the description..." he replied distantly, looking off at the wall.

"Orihime, who's that?" Luke asked.

She turned her attention back to him, still appearing to be upset, "That's Ulquiorra, one of my close friends from work, who was kind enough to drive me home." she replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow at the term 'close friend', and met Luke's hostile glare with his own. He smirked, slipping off his seat, "I suppose I should be leaving now.. Orihime?"

She glanced back at him, suddenly feeling very torn, and bit her lip, "Um.. if you'd like to.." she replied with an indecisive tone, looking at the floor. His smirk grew into a crooked smile as he neared her, glancing at Luke before he stood in front of the redhead, to close for the boyfriend's liking. Ulquiorra lifted her chin gently with his hand, then spoke in a low, seductive tone, "You have my number.. if you need_ anything_."

Her heart skipped a beat as she stared into his enticing emerald gaze, his deep alluring voice ringing in her ears. He dropped his hand from her chin, almost making her moan in disappointment before she remembered who else was there and swallowed it down. Her gaze travelled as he left, brushing past Luke as is he wasn't there, and disappearing from her sight. Her increased heartbeat had caught the blond man's attention, "'Close friend' huh?"

She bit her lip, looking down at the floor, "Sorry, he, um.." she looked back at him pleadingly, and forced a smile, "Thats just how he is, don't worry about it." She reassured as convincingly as possible, but in truth, she knew Luke had every right to worry about it.

He sighed, "Its fine, I just came to apologize for earlier, I had to stay late at work and my phone died before I had the chance to call you.."

She nodded, leaning up to kiss him briefly, "Don't worry about it, I understand." Her hand went to the door, "Um, I appreciate you stopping by, but I'm really tired, long day.. but I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

Luke sighed and nodded, giving her a brief smile and kiss before retreating to his car. Orihime lingered at the door, letting out a sigh of guilt as she closed the door and leaned her back against it, locking the door as she slid to the floor.

…

"I didn't appreciate the way you left last night." Orihime said, suddenly appearing beside him. She had her arms crossed and a stern expression etched into her face. She looked downright pissed. He sighed and stood up straight, wiping his greasy fingers down his shirt. Her sternness faltered a bit,_ he has to be the sexiest greasemonkey in the world..._ She mused, then shook her head, reprimanding herself and resuming her angry demeanor.

He slid his hands into his pockets and stared at her, "I figured it was an appropriate time to leave." he replied aloofly.

"I didn't mean the fact that you left! I was referring to _how_ you left!" she shouted, glaring at him.

He gave her a puzzled look, "And how was that?"

She slapped a hand to her forehead, "You are unbelievable!" she shouted, removing her hand from her forehead, fisting it, and hitting him on the arm with all the force she could muster. He didn't react, he didn't even move. He just stared at her, amusement reflected in his eyes. She scowled, "One of these days, thats gonna hurt!"

"I won't hold my breath.." He retorted flatly, and watched her storm off.

…

"I'm sorry."

Orihime's eyes widened, as well as Starrk and Tia's, all three breaking off from the conversation they had been having. The red head turned towards the monotone voice, matching it to Ulquiorra's stoic, hands-in-pockets stature, and smiled, "Pardon?"

"I said; I'm sorry."

She squealed, appearing in front of him, beaming, "Sorry for what?" she prodded.

He scowled, "You know very well what."

"I wanna hear you say it."

He sighed, shooting a glare at Tia and Starrk, who had both chuckled loudly at the scene, then looked back at Orihime, "I'm sorry for _how_ I left last night. It wasn't fair to you.."

Her grin widened victoriously. "Thank you for your apology Ulqui' he grimaced at the nickname, "But I'm afraid its not me you should apologize to, you shall apologize to Luke."

He glared at her, "Excuse me?"

"He's coming to see me for lunch, you can do it then." She replied, turning her back to his dumbstruck look and continued her conversation with two, now very amused, co-workers.

…

Orihime dragged the very reluctant and annoyed Ulquiorra outside, proceeding towards the awaiting blond man, who's soft expression hardened at the sight of Ulquiorra. They stopped in front of him, the pale man shrugging out of the woman's grip and pocketing his hands. Orihime smiled at Luke, giving him a hug and brief kiss, much to Ulquiorra dislike, before breaking the silence, "Luke, Ulquiorra has something to tell you. I'll be back in a minute." She gave Ulquiorra a warning look before skipping back to building.

Ulquiorra and Luke glared at each other for several seconds, the former speaking first, "I apologize for my behaviour last night."

Luke raised an eyebrow, "Really?" His gaze wavered to his girlfriend, who was talking to an aqua-haired woman in the distance, "Did Orihime tell you to say that?"

"Of course." He replied cooly.

Luke's glare grew, "You're an asshole, y'know that?"

Ulquiorra simply shrugged, looking off in the distance. His eyes flicked back to the tanned man as he began to speak again, "Did you sleep with Orihime?"

Ulquiorra didn't hesitate, "I have shared a bed with the woman," He smirked at the anger rising in the man's eyes, "Although, I can't say I let her get much _sleep_."


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Did you sleep with Orihime?" Luke asked in a gruff tone, holding his glare with the smaller, paler man.

Ulquiorra didn't hesitate, "I have shared a bed with the woman," He smirked, "Although, I can't say I let her get much _sleep._"

The blond man cursed angrily and, being the hot-headed man that he is, swung his fist at the other man. Ulquiorra easily dodged it, his condescending smirk still in place, and in one swift movement, his pale fist met Luke's face.

..

"Um, Hime.." Nel said, interrupting her redheaded friend's explanation of how red-bean paste goes with everything,

"Yeah?"

"Your boyfriends are fighting." Nel said bluntly, nodding off in the distance.

Orihime's eyes widened and she sprinted to the scene, appearing beside the two within seconds and yelling at the top of her lungs, "STOP!"

The two men assumed statue positions, Luke holding Ulquiorra up by the front of his shirt with a fist pointed at the stoic man's face, and stared at the fuming redhead, "What the hell is going on!"

Luke reluctantly loosened his grip, allowing the other man to compose himself. Ulquiorra appeared to be unharmed, and Luke seemed fine, with the exception of his nose, which was oozing blood. He glared at the pale man, who seemed to be disinterested in the situation as he pocketed his hands and gazed off distantly. The blond man wiped his nose as he muttered, "I can't believe you had sex with this guy..."

Blood rushed to her cheeks, "Ulquiorra!" she shouted, whacking him angrily on the arm with her fist.

"Dammit woman, will you stop hitting me!" He said gruffly, rubbing his arm, which to his surprise actually hurt.

"Stop giving me reason to! Why did you tell him that!"

"He asked, I answered." He replied, resuming his usual indifference.

Orihime turned to Luke, "Is that true?" She asked in a slightly hurt but mostly still angry tone.

She received a nod in return, and glared, "Its none of your business who I've slept with!" she seethed, turning on her heel, "Argh!" She threw her arms up in frustration and began walking away, cursing under her breath. She stopped momentarily to tell Luke she'd be back with a first-aid kit, and continued stomping towards the building.

..

Ulquiorra entered the lounge just as Orihime was grabbing a first-aid kit from the cabinet. "You can throw a decent hit, finally." He remarked, leaning against the door as it closed behind him.

Slamming the cabinet door closed, she turned around and glared at him, "You've been great practice." She replied irritably, proceeding towards the exit, which he continued to block.

He gave her a sly smile as she approached him, "Drop the bitterness act, it doesn't suit you."

"Drop the self-centered asshole act," She retorted, he frowned, "but thats not an act, is it?"

"I don't see why you're mad at me, I didn't do anything-"

"Didn't do anything!?" She shouted incredulously, "Ugh! You know, for a smart guy, you can be really thick!"

His brow furrowed, his confusion evident. Orihime sighed heavily, closing her eyes as she shook her head, "You're hopeless." She muttered quietly.

He sighed inwardly and closed the gap between them so they were only mere inches apart. Her eyes snapped open and met his, his emerald orbs atoning as he said softly, "I didn't mean it."

All her anger melted away and was replaced with confusion, she stammered under his intense gaze, "Wh-What?"

His lips formed a tight line as he racked his brain for the words he was going to say a second ago, but they were lost. He wasn't about to stand there like a blubbering fool, so he did the thing he tends to do best, he left. Turned on his heel and swung open the door, leaving at a quickened pace. Orihime stood there for several seconds, until she caught up with the situation and reverted back to her agitated state, following after him.

"Hey!" She shouted, focused on his retreating figure that refused to stop or even acknowledge her. She continued to pursue him, ignoring the curious stares from various co-workers. Orihime sprinted to catch up with him, "Stop!" She yelled, coming to a halt in front of him, he glared at her, "You can't just say something like that and leave!"

"I was successful up until this point.." He replied bluntly, crossing his arms over his chest.

She scowled, "Why do you have to be so damn difficult!? Ugh, you make me so angry!"

"Then why bother?"

"What?"

"Why do you bother with me if I make you so angry?" He responded curiously, "Wouldn't it be easier to just let me go?"

Her brow furrowed as she stammered, "Um.. well, no. I mean, we're friends.. we have to work things out.."

He sighed inwardly, shoving his hands in his pockets, "We've never been 'friends', Orihime." He replied flatly.

She sighed, "Can you just tell me what you meant?"

He glanced over her shoulder, then back at her, "Did you forget something?"

She frowned at his avoidance, "Uh.. no, I don't think so."

He smirked, ""Bloody nose' ring a bell?"

Her eyes widened, "Oh!" She squeaked, scrambling around and catching sight of a very annoyed looking blond man holding his gushing nose. She sprinted over to him, forgetting about her conversation with Ulquiorra, much to his relief. Dropping his gaze to the ground, he walked to his car and got in, slamming the door shut and leaning back. He shut his eyes and covered his face with his arms. This woman was creating much unwanted drama in his otherwise content life.


	12. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews, they are much appreciated. They assure me that this story isn't going downhill..**

**If you're wondering why I changed the title of the story, it's because I have wanted to change the name ever since I decided to make this a longer fic, but couldn't think of the right name until today. It's a song, **'She's Got You High' **By **Mumm-ra**... ****I** **thought it fit the story well...**

Chapter 11

He was looking for something, or rather, someone. In this very popular bar, he was searching. His thoughts were conflicted, his chest felt heavy, he was feeling something he never had before, and he hated it. He needed to take his mind off of her, but it seemed impossible. He saw a bit of her in every lowly woman that interacted with him. After an hour, he was agitated, he only wanted one woman, a certain redhead, and that certain redhead was out of his reach.

He sighed heavily as he slid into an empty booth in the back of the bar, setting his elbows on the table and putting his head in his hands.

"Given up on the search, have we?"

Ulquiorra looked up to see a dark-haired woman who had invaded his booth. She also had her elbows resting on the table, her hands clasped and a grin plastered on her face. He sighed inwardly and leaned back, "I'm not interested."

She chuckled, shaking her head, "Don't flatter yourself," she said, making her ring finger visible, "I'm married."

He continued to stare at her, causing her to chuckle again, "I was watching you for the better part of the last hour.."

He furrowed his brow in response. "Who is she?" She asked, he continued to reflect confusion, "The girl you're trying to forget?"

The look in this woman's eyes let him know she had him figured out, so he sighed inwardly and responded truthfully, "An annoying, difficult and very clumsy airhead." He caught the amused expression on the woman's face, "She's also the most beautiful, kind, and overall lovely woman I have ever met."

"And you love her."

His eyes narrowed, "That's ridiculous. I do not 'love'." He responded flatly, crossing his arms over his chest.

She chuckled, "Keep telling yourself that, and you'll never get her back."

"She was never mine in the first place." He retorted sharply, "And what makes you think I want her?"

"The fact that you have passed by several pretty woman tonight, all have attempted to lure you in, which any other man would have quickly complied. But none of them have sparked your particular interest. Do you know why?"

"Enlighten me." He replied mockingly.

"Because, you sir, are in love." She said a matter-of-factly.

This comment only made his chest swell more. "It doesn't matter if I am or not." He said sharply, becoming more agitated, "She's with someone else."

She frowned, "I didn't take you as the type of guy to let that get in the way." She tapped her chin with her index finger, "Suppose my people reading skills aren't as good as I thought."

He was silent, contemplating whether or not to get up and leave, but couldn't help being curious what the dark haired woman would say next. She said one word, "Go."

His brow furrowed, "Excuse me?"

"Go, be a man, and tell her how you feel. Honestly, what do you have to lose?" She said firmly.

"Nothing." He replied to her rhetorical question, then slid out of the booth, ignoring the encouraging whistle from the woman as he proceeded to leave to bar.

The dark haired woman watched him leave, smiling at her victory. Turning around, she met the proud grins of the married couple she met earlier.

The aqua-haired woman spoke first, clapping her hands together, "Thank you so much!"

She shrugged, "Meh, it wasn't that difficult."

The blue-haired man next to her laughed incredulously, "'Not that difficult' and Ulquiorra don't go together."

The wife continued to smile in contentment, "Thanks for taking the time though, we knew that if we tried saying that to him ourselves, he wouldn't listen. But I agree it was pretty amazing how quickly you got to him.." She said thoughtfully.

The dark-haired woman chuckled, "I have a feeling he wasn't far behind, just needed a little kick." She chuckled once more, then slid out of the booth, with one last smile, she added, "He's lucky to have friends like you."

The two sat in silence for a moment, "Grimmy.. do you think this will work out?"

His expression became thoughtful, "I dunno Nel.. We'll just have to wait and see.."

Nel to bit her lip with worry, _Maybe this was a bad idea.._

…

He sat in his car several minutes later, in front of her apartment complex. He knew what he was doing. He knew what he was going to say. Confidently getting out of the car and walking towards the staircase, he berated himself. He felt like he was in one of those stupid teen drama shows Nel and Lilinette watch.

Standing outside her door, he sighed heavily and brought his knuckles up to the door, knocking twice. He knew it was late, probably rounding 11 o'clock by now, and he waited anxiously, listening for the sound of shuffling feet. After a few long moments, he knocked again, three times. Another minute passed, no sound. He was about to turn away when the door clicked and his heart skipped. His gaze met sleepy silver orbs through the cracked open door. Her eyes widened in shock at the sight of him, and she opened the door more, revealing her completely. His mouth watered at her figure, clad in a thin pink robe, exposing the fact she was nearly-naked underneath. He blinked, mentally shaking the less than honorable thoughts flowing through his mind and met her eyes again.

She cocked her head to the side, "Ulquiorra.." She said, snapping out of her grogginess, "Wh-what are you doing here?" She asked, wrapping her arms around her as she recoiled from the cold night air.

"I had to tell you something."

Her brows knit together. She hadn't spoken to him since the day before when they argued, "In the middle of the night?"

He nodded, "Its.. rather important."

"What is it?" She asked curiously, her remaining bitterness towards him subsiding for the moment,_ Is he going to explain what he meant yesterday?_ She thought to herself, something that had been on her mind constantly since the moment the words left his mouth.

He exhaled slowly, and was about to speak when an unmistakable male voice sounded from inside the apartment, and his heart sank. "Orihime, come back to bed." The voice called.

Her head whipped around to face the voice, missing the crestfallen expression on Ulquiorra's face. His brain quickly put two-and-two together, and his heart dropped even further. She called back half-heartedly, "Yeah! Be right there!"

She turned away from the dark apartment in anticipation, and immediately frowned at the absence of Ulquiorra. She stepped out of the doorway and glanced in either direction. She sighed, "Who the hell is he, Batman?" She muttered, stepping back inside and locking the door once more. She trudged back to her room and slipped back into bed, not bothering to disrobe. The blond man occupying the other half of her bed was fast asleep once more, for that she was glad. She was fully alert now and needed time with her thoughts, which were running rapid.

After much thought and depiction of the previous conversations with Ulquiorra, she concluded that he was indeed keeping something important from her, but couldn't come up with what it could be. She sighed in frustration, something she had been doing more consistently since meeting Ulquiorra four weeks ago. She rolled onto her side, almost dangling off the side as she felt the sudden need to be as far away from her boyfriend as possible, and closed her eyes, resolving to confront Ulquiorra the next day.

…

Nel and Grimmjow were waiting anxiously outside the garage. If they hadn't been mistaken, a certain stoic friend of theirs would be pulling into the parking lot any moment now. And sure enough, after only a minute or two of waiting, a black cadillac came into view and took its usual parking space in the nearly empty lot. Nel bounced excitedly and sprinted over to the car, Grimmjow in tow. They arrived beside the car just as the driver emerged.

He met their curious gazes, "You're here early.." He remarked flatly, pushing past them.

They glanced at each other and fell in step with their friend, Nel speaking first, "Good morning Ulqui, how are you?"

Without averting his gaze from the garage ahead of them, he answered, "I'm fine."

"So.. nothing interesting happened last night?" Grimmjow intervened.

"No." The shorter man replied, glancing at the blunette's confused expression, "Should something interesting have happened?"

"Uhh, I dunno.." Grimmjow became flustered, not wanting to give away his and Nel's interference, "Just, when I asked you last night what you were up to, you said you were headed to the bar.. I just figured.. maybe you met someone there.. or whatever.."

Ulquiorra halted, the fact the Grimmjow hadn't insulted him or cursed yet unnerved him. His bright haired friends stopped as well, looking at him intently. "You two are acting unusual.." He commented, taking in their anxious expressions, he glared and asked sharply, "What did you two do?"

They glanced at each other, exchanging a silent 'Oh shit!', then looked back at Ulquiorra, who was standing, hands-in-pockets, silently waiting for their answer. Nel sighed defeatedly, "We may have... meddled.. a little.. tiny itty bit.."

Ulquiorra's glare grew deathly, "What did you do?"

"Well, you know that woman you talked to last night? Um, well, me and Grimmy may have, possibly, told her to approach you and give you a 'little kick' towards Orihime.." She bowed her head, concluding that there was a possibility their plan failed.

"Is that so.." Ulquiorra became indifferent once more and continued walking, "Keep me updated on any more ingenious plans you come up with."

Nel and Grimmjow stared after the pale man's retreating figure, stunned at his words and trying to decipher whether he was being sarcastic or serious. Coming out of their trance moments later they proceeded to catch up with him.

"So what happened?" Nel asked as they met up with him once more in the lounge.

He turned to face them with a questioning look. Grimmjow grunted, "What happened after you left, asshole."

"Nothing."

Their brow knitted together as they frowned, "What the hell ya mean 'nothing'?" Grimmjow questioned gruffly.

"I went home."

"What do you mean you went home!?" Nel pouted, "You were supposed to go tell Orihime how you feel!"

Ulquiorra tsked, saying with flat sarcasm, "In the middle of the night? Really Nel, that would have been rude."

He began walking out of the room, proceeding to find solitude and avoid his intrusive friends. They stared after him once more, Nel consumed in a pout and Grimmjow with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

…

Orihime stuck to her resolve the following day. She had even come to work early, knowing Ulquiorra would already be there, and she was intent on getting those anticipated words out of him. She knew to find him at his usual work area, and bounded there immediately after arriving. Just as expected, there he was, breathtaking as always. She came to a halt beside him. He took notice to her immediately as he sighed and stood up straight, slipping his hands in his pockets.

"Ulquiorra." She greeted. He stood unmoving, his face unreadable, but his eyes full of curiosity as well as annoyance. She met his gaze, "Why were you at my apartment last night?"

"No particular reason." He lied nonchalantly.

She huffed, "Liar. You were going to tell me something."

"I suppose I was.."

She scowled, "What was it?" She asked fiercely.

He pretended to think, "I honestly don't remember." He began to work again, only irritating her more. "Must not have been important."

She smacked him on the head, "Like hell it wasn't!"

He stood straight, rubbing the back of his head and looked at her again, "I'm not a punching bag." He remarked irritably, "Besides, you were obviously busy." Her brow furrowed, and he slipped his hand back into his pocket, "I figured sleeping with me had been a lapse in judgement.." Her face became red, "but you seem to go fast with everyone.." He turned back to his work, and finished with mock sadness, "And here I thought I was special."

Her face burned as she glared at the man before her. She resisted the urge to hit him, worrying she may be becoming too violent. She remained rooted and said with tinted anger in her voice, "You're right, sleeping with you was a lapse in judgement on my part. However, I have not slept with anyone since then, Luke was simply staying the night." Then she turned and stomped away, fuming with anger.

Ulquiorra stood straight again and sighed. He hadn't wanted to be offensive, but to get the information he wanted, without being obvious, he figured that to be the best way. And he was satisfied with the result. _She hasn't slept with him..._ He thought, smiling to himself for a moment before returning to work. He figured, they argued so much now, it really didn't matter what he said anymore.

…

Orihime entered to lounge, sending off waves of anger, enough to get instant attention from Nel, who was making coffee. "Hime.. What's wrong?"

The redhead strode over to the table and flopped down in a chair. Nel took the seat next to her as the coffee began to brew. Orihime sighed deeply, calming herself and looked up at Nel's worried face. "Ulquiorra." She responded, a hint of anger still in her voice.

"What did he do this time?" Nel asked with a sigh. These two are like a soap opera, and she desperately wanted the current plot to change.

Orihime pinched the bridge of her nose, "He's keeping something from me... Last night, he came to my place at like, eleven or something, and said he had something to tell me-"

"Really!" Nel said, almost too excitedly. The redhead gave her a bewildered look. Nel composed herself, "Continue.."

"But then Luke called to me from the bedroom.. and when I took my eyes off of him to answer back, he just disappeared."

Nel mulled this over. So thats what happened, her and Grimmjow hadn't thought about the possibility of Luke being there, "I see."

Orihime looked at her questionably. Nel, not wanting to spill anything about why he was really there, prodded the redhead on, "So, did anything happen after that?"

"I just spoke to him.. and I asked him about last night, like, what he was gonna say, and he just avoided it completely! He said he 'forgot'." Her frown deepened, "Then he made some comment about me going 'fast with everyone' because I guess he assumed that since Luke was there last night.. and I suppose I wasn't wearing much, because my pjs always get twisted around when I sleep so I choose not to wear them beca-

"Get to the point Hime." Nel interjected.

"Right, sorry. Anyways, I of course corrected him, saying I had not slept with Luke, or anyone else since him, and I stormed off."

Nel couldn't help but smile faintly, _That must've made him happy.._

"And the worst part is, I didn't even get an answer! He always does that, avoids or disappears before he has to! Its so annoying!"

Nel giggled. The redhead glared, "What's so funny?" She asked incredulously.

"Nothing, nothing.. I just think you two are.. funny."

Orihime's face dropped to confusion, "What do you mean?"

Nel looked thoughtful for a moment, "How do I put it.. hmmm. I suppose, you two have a good dynamic." She laughed, "Just throw in sex between all those arguments and you'll have what me and Grimmy have!"

Orihime's face burned as she blushed furiously. Nel stood up, "Speaking of Grimmjow.. I must find him.. I have important.." She glanced at the blushing girl, ".. things to tell him. See ya later Hime!" She skipped out of the room, forgetting all about her coffee, leaving a flustered Orihime in her wake.

…

"That lil' fucker!" Grimmjow exclaimed after hearing what Orihime said.

Nel nodded, "Yup."

"And of course, the bastard went and fucked it up again. I swear, he enjoys this."

"Well, I dunno about that. Even you noticed how off he's been lately.. more depressed than usual.." Nel remarked.

Grimmjow grunted, "Yeah.. I guess. Anyway, what are we gonna do now. Don't you think this is kind of a lost cause?"

Nel shook her her furiously, "No. The fact that she still puts up with him holds hope.." She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "We just need to figure out her true feelings, see if its mutual."

"How do we do that.. we can't just ask her."

"You're right.. we need to be subtle, indirect.. hmm." Five minutes later, she clapped her hands together and beamed brightly, "I got it!"

…

Ulquiorra leaned against the hood of his car, arms crossed over his chest, head bowed, deep in thought. Contemplating whether to apologize to her, or just leave her to continue being angry with him. Then his eyes snapped open with a resolve, perhaps it would dispel her anger. It wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the complete truth. But she would be none the wiser, and perhaps accept it with a smile. He wanted to have that smile of hers directed at him again, it seemed like ages since that happened.

He heard a car door open and glanced over to see Orihime by her car, about to leave, but his notice delayed her. He found it odd that she still parked her car next to his, force of habit perhaps..

He walked over to her, meeting her slight glare, and stood directly in front of her. She leaned back against her car, crossing her arms under her chest.

"The day we came back from Atlantic City.. I didn't mean what I said." He spoke softly and evenly. He saw a twitch at her lips, and just as he had hoped, a smile, although faint, spread.

She felt her anger subside slightly. "Really..?" He nodded, "So, it meant something to you after all?"

He gave another curt nod. Her smile grew, tugging at his heart again, "So that was what you meant the other day..." She concluded to herself, then directed at him, she said, "But that's not what you were going to say last night."

His frown deepened. She was still going on about that, but wasn't going to get the truth out of him any time soon, if ever. He sighed inwardly, "Of course it was." He lied. Then added to indulge her further away from the subject, "I apologize."

Her smile grew wider. She had been told that by Grimmjow how rare it was for Ulquiorra to apologize, and felt a small tug at her heart when he said it to her. A teasing glimmer entered her eyes, "For what?"

He felt a tug at his lips also, then looked away, shrugging slightly, "Everything, anything." He glanced back at her, "We argue so much lately I've lost track of what it is I do to upset you.."

She giggled heartily, beaming up at him, "You're forgiven." Then winked, "Clean slate.."

"I'll have it filled by next week."

She giggled again, nodded in agreement as she bit her lip, gazing into his eyes, that still managed to captivate her fully. He was the first to break the gaze and averted his eyes to a distant point. "Seems we're being watched." He said, looking intently at the two bright haired and very intrusive friends. He sighed. Orihime looked back and giggled as the distant married couple scrambled out of view, realizing they had been caught.

He held her gaze once more, for a long moment, then smiled the faintest smile and back away.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" She asked, her gaze following him as he rounded her car and opened the door of his own. He glanced back at her, nodded, and lowered himself into his car. She smiled to herself, doing the same. She sat for a moment. Nel's earlier comment flowed through her mind, and she muttered to herself, "Sex would've been better.. but this works too." She giggled and turned the engine on. Her eyes widened at realization and she smacked herself on the side of the head, "Bad Hime, Bad.." She chided herself.

Feeling eyes on her she looked to see Ulquiorra's slightly confused eyes turned on her, he hadn't left yet, he just saw her hitting herself on the head. She was glad that her windows had been up, so he hadn't heard what she said, but she still blushed and giggled with embarrassment. Shaking his head with a smirk on his face, he drove off.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"I don't think that'll work.." Grimmjow commented after hearing his wife's plan, "Maybe asking her straight up would be better..."

Nel scowled, "Sure it'll work! And you and I both know that if we ask her she'll just deny it and get all embarrassed. No, we can't just ask her!"

Grimmjow rolled his eyes, "You women.." He said, shaking his head, "So much fuckin trouble.."

This received a smack on the back of the head from Nel, "Let's go, no time to lose!"

The blunette grunted, following his wife's lead with a scowl on his face. After walking a little ways through the garage, they found him, "Ulqui!" Nel greeted enthusiastically, skipping towards him.

Ulquiorra scowled, "I'm busy."

"Psssh," Nel waved it off, "This is more important."

He raised an eyebrow in slight interest, "Is that so?" He asked, leaning against the car he was working on.

Nel nodded her head, "We have a new plan!"

He sighed, "When I told you to keep me updated, I was joking-

"Shut the fuck up and listen." Grimmjow demanded.

Nel took the silence as a gesture to continue, "We decided that we should find out if she likes you the same way you like her-

"She doesn't." Ulquiorra interjected.

Nel smacked him on the head, "We don't know that!"

Rubbing his head as he glared at the aqua-haired woman, he questioned, "How do you intend to find out then?"

"I told everyone earlier in the week about me and Grimmy's anniversary party, which Orihime confirmed she'd be coming to with Luke. So, all we have to do is make her jealous by having you bring a hot date."

Ulquiorra frowned, "How is bringing another girl supposed to help anything. Won't it just push her further away..."_ If that's possible_, he continued in his mind.

"Because, if she's jealous, that means she still likes you. And that will spark her desire to have you."

Ulquiorra's frown deepened with disbelief, "I don't think that'll work."

"That's what I said!" Grimmjow exclaimed.

Nel sighed, "You men are so dense.." She remarked quietly, pinching the bridge of her nose. "It'll work, trust me." She said, giving both of them a reassuring look.

Ulquiorra was silent for a moment, mulling over the idea. "I suppose it couldn't hurt." He concluded out loud, causing Nel to clap her hands together excitedly. "So, who's this 'hot date' I'm supposed to bring?"

"That bit-" A hand clapped over Grimmjow's mouth, muffling the rest of his words. Nel giggled nervously,

"Don't worry about that." She grabbed her husband's arm and began pulling him away, "Just show up tonight lookin' sexy and leave the rest to me!"

…

Ulquiorra stood in a pair of black jeans with his arms crossed over his bare chest, looking down at the three button up shirts lain on his bed. He had never given much thought to his wardrobe, in fact, for most of his adult life, Nel had picked his clothes for him. He would thoughtlessly try on the clothes she gave him, and left the decision making to Nel's keen eyes. His gaze drifted across the shirts, from the black, to the gray, to the green. His eyes lingered on the third, the one that had been picked by the woman of his affections. He picked it up, feeling the material as he thought, then concluded it to be too heavy for such a hot night. He dropped it back on the mattress. Glancing at the clock, he realized he had to leave soon, and with a sigh grabbed the black shirt. "Your plan better work Nel.." He muttered to himself as he buttoned the shirt up and left the room.

Meanwhile, in her apartment only fifteen minutes away, Orihime stood in front of her mirror, biting her lip as she scrutinized her appearance. She hadn't been sure what to wear, and had gone through several outfits. She settled on a simple thin-strapped white dress that fanned out at the hips to reach just below mid-thigh. Hearing a knock at her door, she quickly put her long hair into a loose braid and ran to answer it.

"Hey." Luke greeted as the door opened.

She smiled, "Hey." she said, examining his attire of a short sleeved button up and jeans, _At least if I'm underdressed, I'm not the only one_.. "You look great."

"Er.. thanks." He said, scratching his head, "Ready to go?"

She nodded, grabbing her purse and stepping out, her smile dropping to a frown as she turned to lock her door. That was one thing Luke never did, comment on her appearance. _'I think you're beautiful, and you know you are too..'_ Ulquiorra's words floated through her mind, making her smile again.

…

After parking his car at the end of the driveway, Ulquiorra trekked up towards the house. Normally, he would let himself in and walk about the house until he found them, but today he was greeted by an enthusiastic Nel. She had been waiting for him on the front porch, "Ulqui!"

He nodded and followed her into the house. They followed the smell of food and sound of low playing music to the back yard. As they passed through the kitchen he asked, "So, did you manage to find me a 'date'?"

She gave him a sheepish look, "Yeah.."

He raised an eyebrow, "And?"

They exited through the doors, out to the back deck, "Well, you remember Grimmy's cousin-

"Ulquiorra," A shrill voice interrupted.

Said man glared at Nel, "- Loly.." She finished. Ulquiorra turned to the other woman, his frown deepening by the second,

"Long time no see." Loly said, walking up to him. He looked her over, from her usual pigtails, pallid skin, scant clothing, which today was a tight black mini dress and high heeled boots. At one time, he thought she was attractive, until he got to know her. Now he felt mild disgust and total disinterest towards her.

"Loly." He greeted flatly, recoiling from her touch.

She smirked, "So cold.. you haven't changed a bit, have you."

"Neither have you." He retorted bluntly, his eyes hardening.

She giggled, the sound harmful to his ears. He felt Nel shift away, "I'll just leave you two-

"Nel," She stopped, meeting Ulquiorra's glare, "can I speak with you, alone?"

Giving her no time to answer, he took her arm and dragged her back inside, through the kitchen and into the empty dining room. He let go of her arm, "You can't be serious."

"I'm sorry Ulqui.. it was kinda short notice.. and she was already coming.. so I figured she'd do. Besides, she's always adored you." Nel gave him an apologetic look, "Come on, it's just for one night."

He sighed, softening his glare. "Fine."

She smiled, nudging his arm. He slid his hands into his pockets, "Happy anniversary."

"Thanks!"

He looked off thoughtfully, "How you've managed to put up with that idiot after all these years, I will never understand..."

Nel giggled, then, hearing the doorbell, skipped off to answer it. Ulquiorra reluctantly went outside, joining Loly again, but stood a safe distance from her. She closed it, much to his dismay, and dragged him into a conversation with her twin, Menoly, and a tall blond man, who Ulquiorra recognized from highschool.

"You remember my sister Menoly," Loly said. Ulquiorra and Menoly nodded in acknowledgment to each other.

"Hey Ulquiorra," Menoly said, then gestured to her date, "This is my boyfriend, Tesla.. you probably remember him.."

Ulquiorra nodded slightly, "You're the one that did all of Nnoitra's homework." He stated bluntly, then his mind drifted away from the conversation that didn't interest him in the slightest.

…

Nel skipped through the house and opened the door excitedly, "Hime!" She greeted, hugging the redhead immediately. Orihime smiled back as she was released from the slight death hold. Nel gestured them inside.

"This place is beautiful, Nel." Orihime commented, looking around in awe.

Nel giggled, "Thanks! I inherited it from my grandparents... Seems a little big and empty," She giggled, "But I'm planning to fill it up with children soon!" She claimed, hugging her flat stomach, then frowned, "Eventually..."

Orihime smiled, following Nel through the house, and sighed heavily as the smell of food filled her nostrils, "Ah, I'm so hungry!"

"Well there's lots of food, eat all you want!" Nel exclaimed, leading them through the kitchen and out to the yard. There was around ten people, a few that Orihime didn't recognize, "Not everyone's here yet..."

Ulquiorra's eyes drifted towards the orange-haired beauty, causing his heart to skip and eyes to unconsciously brighten. Nel spotted him looking, "You guys should meet Ulquiorra's date.." She said, steering them in his direction.

Orihime's heart dropped slightly, and so did her smile, "He has a date?" She asked.

Nel nodded, giving a knowing look, _And so it begins.._

The three of them joined the group just as Grimmjow did the same. Nel smiled and clung to her husband, whispering something in his ear, to which he grinned at Orihime. This went unnoticed by the redhead, as she fought back a grimace at the sight of the girl draped on Ulquiorra and forced a fake smile, "Hey Ulquiorra." She greeted.

He nodded, then glanced at her companion, "Luke, how's the nose?" He asked flatly, smirking.

Tension rose among the group, but not between Ulquiorra and Orihime, who were in a very obvious ogle-fest. Instead, the tension rose from their dates, Luke glaring daggers at Ulquiorra, and Loly doing the same to Orihime. The scene made Nel want to laugh in victory, silently praising herself. Grimmjow, Tesla, and Menoly all shifted awkwardly.

Ulquiorra was snapped out of his trance by a pinch on his arm, he turned to scowl at his 'date', "Aren't you going to introduce me?" Loly asked through gritted teeth.

"Orihime," He said, turning back to her, "this is Loly."

The redhead smiled with fake enthuse, saying evenly, "Nice to meet you, Loly."

Said woman scowled, but before she could say anything, Nel began introducing everyone, including Luke, who was slightly taken aback that Orihime hadn't acknowledged him since they arrived.

"Anyone want a drink?" Grimmjow asked, breaking the silence and tension that ensued after the introductions.

"I do." Luke said, breaking his glare from Ulquiorra and turning to the blue-haired man, who gestured for him to follow.

Orihime took little notice to her companion leaving, still gazing longingly at Ulquiorra. The moment she saw him with Loly, all the feelings for him she had locked away erupted at once. Now, she was fighting to keep control over them and struck up a conversation with Nel about who else was coming.

"Hmmm, everyone from work I believe. I think my brothers' are coming by too-

"Your brothers?"

Nel nodded, smiling, "Yeah, Pesche and Chakka. I don't get to see them as often since last year when Grimmjow demanded they move out of the house, so I hope they come."

"Oh, I hope they do too, I'd like to meet them."

"No, you wouldn't." Ulquiorra interjected.

Nel glared, "Hey! They aren't that bad!"

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. A muscular arm slid across Nel's shoulders, "Still arguing that, are you?" Grimmjow said, giving his wife a beer.

She huffed, "They're just different." She defended, taking a gulp of beer, "Anyways, I think everyone but Aizen is coming."

"I'm not complaining about that.." Grimmjow added.

"Lilinette!" A man's voice shouted. All heads whipped around to see Starrk trekking lazily after his rowdy little sister, who was skipping away from him with a bottle of rum, an unimpressed looking Tia alongside him. They were all used to this behaviour, and everyone went back to their conversations. Except Grimmjow who caught Lilinette mid-skip and took the bottle from her hands.

"Awe Grimmy! No fair!" She whined, pouting at him.

He grinned, leaning down to whisper, "Wait til later, when he's not paying attention."

She giggled, then nodded and skipped back towards her brother, who looked completely exhausted. Orihime was pleased to see the blonde teenager dressed more appropriately for once. She was also pleased that she hadn't been under or over dressed herself. Then she scanned around, furrowing her brow, "Where's Luke?"

Grimmjow couldn't help but laugh, and Ulquiorra let a smirk show. "He's in the kitchen." Grimmjow answered. Orihime nodded and made her way to said place.

"Nel, how's it going?" Ulquiorra asked all the sudden. Nel gave him a confused look, to which he raised an eyebrow and nodded in the direction Orihime just went.

She grinned in understanding, "Perfectly." She answered with a wink, "Just as I expected it would." Ulquiorra gave into the tug at his lips, smiling faintly.

…

Orihime entered the kitchen to find Luke brooding by the counter, beer in hand. She smiled and walked up to him, "Hey, there you are."

He glanced at her, "Just realized I was gone did you." He commented bitterly.

She frowned, "Are you okay?"

He sighed, shaking his head slightly, "I'd be better if my girlfriend wasn't ogling another guy." He said truthfully.

"Wh-what do you mean?" She asked, her face flushing.

"You love him, don't you?"

Her eyes widened slightly as she stammered to answer. "Heya Princess." She turned to the voice, grateful for the interruption, even if it was Nnoitra.

She smiled, "Hello Nnoitra." She greeted, her eyes drifted to the woman beside him, who had a faint resemblance of Loly.

He grinned toothily, "This must be the boyfriend.." He concluded, glancing at the blond man beside her.

"Oh yes, this is Luke." Orihime responded.

Nnoitra's eye lingered on said man, then nodded to his left, "This is Cirucci." He said, and the woman nodded silently in greeting. "Well.. suppose its time to drink." He said, grabbing a bottle of whiskey from the counter and leading his date outside.

"Answer the question Orihime." Luke prodded, catching her attention again.

She bit her lip as she stared at him, he sighed, putting his drink down, "You say a lot when you keep your mouth shut." He remarked coldly, walking out of the room.

"Wait.." She said, following him, "Luke, wait, its not what you think-" She cut herself off as she stepped out onto the porch. Her eyes followed his retreating figure until he reached his car and drove off. "Do I love him.." She muttered to herself, sitting down on the steps.

…

He hadn't seen her for a while, and was slightly worried. He had tuned out Loly's incessant talking and ignored her groping, but now, had had enough. He pulled away from her, cutting off her speech, "I think that'll do."

"What?"

"Thanks for your help Loly, I hope we don't meet again." He said flatly, smirked, then turned away from the fuming woman and proceeded towards the house. He had found out what he needed to know. Nel had implied the fact that Orihime was jealous, even he could see it, feel it. And if Nel had been right, which she usually was, that meant Orihime liked him.

She wasn't in the kitchen, his brow furrowed, _Did she get lost_? He ignored the possibility that her and Luke were being affectionate behind closed doors, and continued searching the house. Lastly, he went out to the front porch, and there she was, sitting on the steps alone.

She glanced back at the sound of the door closing and her face lit up at the sight of Ulquiorra. She smiled, "Managed to get out of Loly's death grip I see."

He smirked and sat down next to her, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together.

"She seems... nice...?"

"She's revolting."

Orihime giggled, "I take it there won't be a second date."

"I can assure you, I won't be dating for a while."

"Oh no? Why's that?"

He looked at her as he answered, "Because, my heart already belongs to someone." Then gaze off distantly once more. "You look beautiful, by the way." She blushed, "But you're boyfriend must've already told you that.. where is he anyway?"

"He left." She replied.

"Howcome?"

"I believe he broke up with me.."

He gave her an incredulous look, "Really?" She nodded. He gazed off distantly and mumbled, "Idiot.."

"I have to admit I'm relieved."

He met her eyes, "You are?"

"Yeah.. It wasn't going to last anyway."

"What makes you so sure of that?"

She smirked, "Because, my heart belongs to someone else."

They held each other's gaze for several seconds, then Orihime rested her head on his shoulder, sighing in content as she entwined her hand in his.

**Author's Note: The next chapter will be a continuation of the party, but I wanna make everyone as in-character as possible, so it'll be a while.. Please review!**


End file.
